The Prosecutor General’s Office is a new center of influence: what does the expansion of its powers mean for NABU and SAPO?
23 July 2025 18:36
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed the controversial draft law No. 12414, which expands the powers of the Prosecutor General’s Office over the activities of the NABU and the SAPO. The document was voted for by 263 MPs. The law came into force today, July 23.
In particular, the adopted amendments allow the Prosecutor General to interfere in the work of the NABU – in particular, he will be able to withdraw cases from the Bureau’s jurisdiction and transfer them to other law enforcement agencies, as well as
- has the right to give binding written instructions to NABU detectives and, in case of non-compliance, to change the jurisdiction by transferring the case to other bodies;
- may close the investigation at the request of the defense;
- resolves disputes over jurisdiction on his own;
- independently signs suspicions to top officials;
- the head of the SAPO loses the right to be a member of the group of prosecutors – this is decided only by the Prosecutor General.
In addition, Transparency notes that these provisions actually make the Prosecutor General the head of the SAPO.
“It’s a blow to the anti-corruption system”: MPs comment on the adoption of draft law No. 12414
The adoption of the controversial draft law No. 12414, which expands the powers of the Prosecutor General in the cases of the NABU and the SAPO, has caused a wave of criticism from civil society organizations, anti-corruption institutions, and some members of the parliament.
[Kommersant asked MPs to comment on whose interests the new law actually protects
MP Yaroslav Yurchyshyn of the Voice faction attributes the hasty adoption of the bill to the intensification of NABU investigations of influential figures.
“This is directly related to the suspicion of former Minister Oleksandr Chernyshov and the preparation of a suspicion against MP Mindich. It’s cynical that the draft law appeared on the agenda only an hour before the meeting, and as a “draft law on missing persons,” the MP said.
He also draws attention to the voting method:
“The last-minute amendments were completely irrelevant. MPs from the “Servant of the People” and all groups were forced to vote – there were enough votes. This is a planned operation to dismantle the independent anti-corruption system.”
MP from the Servant of the People party, Heorhiy Mazurashu, confirmed that the amendments were the most controversial.
“The amendments stipulate that the Prosecutor General will be able to transfer cases between agencies, in particular, from the NABU and the SAPO. This caused resistance from some MPs, who perceived it as a “destruction” of the anti-corruption agencies,” he explained.
However, there were also those in the parliament who saw the changes as a “way out from under external influence.”
“Personally, I voted with a yellow card, in particular because of the violation of the Rules of Procedure. I would have supported the basic version of the law without these amendments.”
The European Solidarity faction has an unequivocal position – a categorical disagreement with the adopted law.
“We did not vote and did not support it. This is the destruction of the independence of the NABU, the destruction of the SAPO. In fact, this is the destruction of the entire anti-corruption vertical,” said Mykola Velychkovych.
He also emphasized that these bodies were established under international agreements:
“Their creation was one of the requirements for visa-free travel, and now for European integration. This is a blow to the system that has been built up over the years. We see that this happened as soon as NABU got closer to the president’s entourage.”
Amid the criticism, some “servants” expressed full support for the document. For example, MP Yuriy Kamelchuk briefly characterized his attitude to the law:
“I would give this law a score of 5,” the parliamentarian said.
Powers of NABU and SAPO: who is responsible for what in the anti-corruption system
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) is a central executive body with a special status created to fight corruption at the highest level. Its key tasks include:
- detecting, preventing and investigating corruption crimes within its jurisdiction;
- conducting operational and investigative activities;
- exposing officials involved in large-scale corruption;
- preventing the commission of new offenses.
- The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) is an autonomous unit within the Prosecutor’s Office that provides procedural guidance in cases investigated by the NABU. The SAPO also:
- supports prosecution in court in grand corruption cases;
- controls the legality of actions of NABU detectives during pre-trial investigation;
- decides on serving a notice of suspicion and approving an indictment.
Together, the NABU and the SAPO constitute an independent anti-corruption vertical created to investigate corruption among senior state officials.
