Sytnyk No Longer Legitimate as NABU Director
On 16 December, the three-month period expires allowed by the Constitutional Court to resolve the situation around the National Anticorruption Bureau and its director
In breach of a ruling of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine (CCU), Artem Sytnyk continues to serve as director of NABU, despite being listed in the Uniform Public Register of Corrupt Officials for committing corrupt acts or similar offences, as reported by DS.
On 28 August, the CCU handed down a ruling that found Sytnyk's appointment as NABU director unconstitutional. NABU responded by claiming that "the fact that the presidential edict appointing the director has been found unconstitutional does not terminate" Sytnyk or trigger his dismissal. That said, even some members of Parliament of the Servant of the People faction think President Volodymyr Zelensky should "avert Sytnyk's constitutional coup d'état".
On top of that, a petition has been posted on the president's website seeking "corrupt Sytnyk's dismissal". The petition has gathered the minimum number of votes (25,000) required for presidential review. The only promise Zelensky made to G7 ambassadors, however, was that the NABU director would stay in office, come December 16.
"The ruling of the Constitutional Court does not change the fact that NABU was created or how it operates, nor does it impose any restrictions of the work of NABU detectives or challenge NABU's status as a law enforcement authority. We guarantee that the NABU director will stay in office come December 16", said Zelensky in a statement on 19 November.
Minister of Justice Denus Malyuska stated in a Facebook post that Artem Sytntyk would continue in office as NABU director. Suffice it to say, as minister of justice he has no authority to interpret Constitutional Court opinions. The enforcement arm of the Ministry of Justice had earlier failed to enforce a ruling of the Kiev Circuit Administrative Court ordering Artem Sytnyk's dismissal by removing him from the Uniform Public Register in pursuance of the CCU ruling.
It is quite remarkable that in early October a court ordered a probe into allegations of usurpation of power by Artem Sytnyk and compelled the State Bureau of Investigations to register relevant data in the Uniform Register. If Sytnyk is found guilty, he could face years behind bars.
By way of a reminder, in December 2019, Artem Sytnyk was listed in the Uniform Register of Corrupt Officials. Sytnyk was listed because he had failed to declare a holiday in Rivne region.