Zelensky reacts to the scandal with NABU and SAPO: video
23 July 07:45
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy explained the deprivation of NABU and SAPO of their independence by the need to rid them of “Russian influence.” He said this in his address, according to "Komersant Ukrainian"
He noted that he had spoken with NABU Head Semen Kryvonos, SAPO Prosecutor Oleksandr Klymenko, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, and Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasyl Malyuk.
According to him, there are “various challenges” and they “discussed all of this.”
“The anti-corruption infrastructure will work. Only without Russian influence – we need to clear everything of it. And there should be more justice. Of course, NABU and SAPO will work,” Zelenskyy said.
According to him, the Prosecutor General is determined to ensure that in Ukraine “the inevitability of punishment for those who go against the law is actually ensured.” He also added that the cases that have been lying dormant should be investigated.
“For years, officials who have fled Ukraine have been living abroad for some reason – in very nice countries and without legal consequences. This is not normal. There is no rational explanation for why criminal proceedings worth billions have been hanging around for years. And there is no explanation why the Russians can still get the information they need. It is important to do it without Russians. It is important that there is an inevitability of punishment and that society really sees it,” Zelenskyy summarized.
On the evening of July 22, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law restricting the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
Prior to that, people in a number of cities took to the streets in peaceful protests against the signing of the law. In particular, in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Dnipro, Lutsk, Poltava, and Ternopil. The protesters chanted and called for the law to be vetoed.
What you need to know about draft law No. 12414
The draft law was initiated by MPs Maksym Pavliuk, Viacheslav Medianyk, Oleksandr Bakumov, and Serhiy Minko.
The document was registered in the Verkhovna Rada on January 16, 2025. On April 29, the bill was adopted as a basis. On Tuesday, July 22, the law was adopted (263 MPs pressed the green button) and sent to the President of Ukraine for signature.
Officially, the document concerns amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code regarding the investigation of disappearances under special circumstances during martial law. But, according to MP Anastasia Radina, it has been amended to actually subordinate the NABU and the SAPO to the Prosecutor General.
In particular, the law gives the Prosecutor General the following powers
- access to all NABU cases and delegate this access to other prosecutors;
- provide written instructions to NABU detectives and change the jurisdiction of cases;
- to independently resolve disputes over jurisdiction and sign suspicions to top officials;
- exclusively decide who is part of the group of prosecutors, depriving the head of the SAPO of this right;
- to close investigations at the request of the defense.
On the eve of the adoption of the draft law, the SBU and the Prosecutor General’s Office announced that they had exposed Russian influence on the NABU. According to law enforcement officials, some of the Bureau’s employees are accused of treason, illegal trade with Russia, and working in the interests of oligarchs. At least 70 searches were conducted.
