NABU is preparing for the first international audit, partners have already identified candidates - Krivonos

NABU is preparing for the first international audit, partners have already identified candidates - Krivonos

Kyiv  •  UNN

August 9 2024, 03:16 PM  •  17441 views

The NABU director announced preparations for an independent audit of the bureau. International partners submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers a list of candidates for the commission that will review the activities of anti-corruption officials.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine is preparing for an independent audit, and international partners have already proposed to the Cabinet of Ministers a list of candidates for the commission that will review the activities of anti-corruption officials. This was announced by NABU Director Semen Kryvonos.

An independent audit, which is to take place this year... As far as I know, international partners, as required by law, have submitted lists of candidates to the Cabinet of Ministers. We are waiting for the government's decision - personally, as Director, I am looking forward to this important step in the NABU's history

- Kryvonos said during a briefing on the results of the work of anti-corruption activists in the first half of 2024.

The NABU director emphasized that he and the bureau's staff would facilitate an independent audit that would reveal both the bureau's strengths and weaknesses.

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In their report on the results of the previous audit, foreign experts identified a number of problems in the NABU's activities. In particular, the auditors concluded that detectives need communication with psychologists and the ombudsman. 

The NABU audit also revealed signs of low morale among anti-corruption officers and a massive desire to leave the bureau. In particular, the detectives were "stressed" by the war and bureaucracy.

Foreign experts also pointed out that the level of public trust in the NABU remains very low. According to their information, in 2023, more than half of the respondents (54.4%) did not trust the anti-corruption officers, and less than a third (only about 28% of respondents) fully or at least partially trusted the actions of the detectives. The auditors pointed out that the level of trust in anti-corruption activists is affected by the lack of convictions in high-profile cases. 

In addition, international auditors have statedthat the HACC has been considering cases for years, while NABU detectives can investigate them for decades. However, as practice shows, the duration of an anti-corruption investigation does not affect its quality, as "high-profile" NABU cases against high-ranking officials have repeatedly fallen apart in courts.