Prosecutor General Kostin resigned: why and what he was remembered for
22 October 2024 18:12
On 22 October, Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin resigned after a high-profile scandal with the Medical Expert Commission and fake disabilities of prosecutors in the regions. This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to the Prosecutor General’s Office.
It is known that Kostin announced this decision after a meeting of the National Security and Defence Council with the participation of the president, where the obviously immoral situation with fake disabilities of civil servants was discussed.
“I believe that the position of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy is absolutely correct that not only should all unlawful decisions on granting disabilities, relevant pension and other accruals be cancelled, but there should be not only clear legislative and organisational changes, but also personal responsibility. This includes political responsibility,” Kostin said.
According to him, inspections are currently underway at all levels of the state, and criminal proceedings are being investigated. Many shameful facts of abuse have been uncovered in the system of prosecutor’s offices in Ukraine.
“I am grateful to the President of Ukraine and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for their trust. But in this situation, I believe it is right to resign from the post of Prosecutor General,” the Prosecutor General added.
Prosecutor General resigns: how society reacted
The resignation of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine has already been addressed by MP Iryna Gerashchenko.
“Prosecutor General Kostin has resigned. “The EU will demand a report to the Verkhovna Rada. Especially against the backdrop of information about dozens of prosecutors with disabilities, political pressure on business and the opposition, and other fraud. Well, we hope Kostin is not Zelensky’s new ambassador to somewhere else,” she wrote on her Telegram channel.
MP Oleksiy Honcharenko also expressed his opinion.
“Back in the summer, I raised the issue of Kostin’s resignation when it became known about the corrupt actions of his deputy Verbytskyi. Then we summoned him to the Rada to give an explanation. But prosecutors and the MSEC finished Kostin off,” Goncharenko wrote.
And Yaroslav Zheleznyak called Andriy Kostin “the most talentless Prosecutor General in history”.
“He stupidly handed over control to his deputies (like the corrupt Verbytskyi) and was engaged in tourism.
He also justified the pressure on business and made up some figures from the ceiling… He should have been fired for incompetence a couple of years ago… and now he will be sent somewhere else to do tourism,” the MP wrote.
What is known about Andriy Kostin
Kostin graduated from the Odesa State University named after I. Mechnikov with a degree in law. Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the Odesa Regional Bar Association. Co-founder and member of the Board of the Odesa Diplomatic Club. Lawyer. Co-founder and director of Pravo Law Firm.
Since 2000, he has been a member of the International Bar Association (IBA). He served as Deputy Chairman of the Subcommittee on Land Transport of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee.
In 2010-2015, he was a deputy of the Odesa City Council in the 23rd district from the Front of Changes party.
In 2012, he was elected as a member of the Bar Council of Odesa Region, and later as the Deputy Chairman of the Council.
In 2013-2016, he was the Chairman of the International Relations Committee of the Ukrainian National Bar Association.
In 2019, he was elected as a Member of Parliament of the 9th convocation from the Servant of the People party, number 108 on the list as a non-partisan. He is a member of the faction of the same name. Since 10 November 2019, he has been a member of the party. Until 14 January 2020, he was the Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Legal Policy, and then the Chairman of the Committee.
In 2021, he participated in the competition for the position of the head of the SAPO, but did not pass the interview. on 27 July 2022, the Rada supported the appointment of Andrii Kostin as Prosecutor General of Ukraine. The decision was supported by 299 MPs.
What scandals are associated with the name of Andrii Kostin?
According to the Open Register of National Public Figures of Ukraine, Kostin’s wife works as an assistant consultant to his party, parliamentary and committee colleague Dyrdin, and Dyrdin’s wife works as an assistant consultant to Kostin. A similar “exchange” exists between the candidate and MP Zadorozhnyi: Kostin’s daughter works as an assistant consultant to the latter, and presumably Zadorozhnyi’s son works as an assistant consultant to Kostin. These are possible cases of nepotism (the use of official powers in the interests of close relatives).
According to the Skhemy project, Dyrdina’s wife, who is Kostin’s assistant, may also be involved in money laundering as part of a project of the time of former President Viktor Yanukovych to hold the Winter Olympics in Ukraine.
In 2019-2020, Andrii Kostin did not declare any residence in Kyiv, although, according to the Verkhovna Rada website, he received budgetary compensation for renting a house or renting a hotel room in the amount of about UAH 20,000 per month. The candidate’s daughter, who has been working in Kyiv since 2019 as an assistant consultant to another MP, a colleague from the Servant of the People faction, Andrii Zadorozhnyi, has not declared her place of residence either.
As chairman of the Legal Policy Committee, Andrii Kostin was responsible for judicial reform in the parliament. However, it was during Kostin’s leadership of the committee that proper judicial reform was blocked, and the necessary legislative changes and proposals were distorted. In particular, the process of relaunching the HQCJ has stopped, leaving Ukraine short of about 2,000 judges. Instead of restarting the HCJ, it was strengthened. And the Parliament continues to appoint judges of the Constitutional Court without a transparent competition.
