Corrupt officials
The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky ordered the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny to dismiss Yevgeny Borisov, head of the Odessa Regional Recruitment Center, on suspicion of corruption. Zelensky announced the move on his Telegram channel. Since July 2019 Borisov has led the Odessa military registration and recruitment office.
“I gave urgent instructions to the Commander-in-Chief Zaluzhny to immediately dismiss the so-called Odessa military commissar, the head of the local recruitment center, on which the entire country is focused,” Zelensky wrote.
The president also directed the formation of a commission to inspect military commissars across Ukraine for corruption. The delegation will be led by First Deputy Minister of Defense Oleksandr Pavlyuk.
“Urgent orders have been issued to create a commission under General Pavlyuk, with the participation of the law enforcement bloc and the National Anti-Corruption Agency, to conduct checks in all military offices. To honor the memory of heroes who fell at the front and to prevent tarnishing the state, we have appointed commissars in every region,” Zelensky stated.
everything is denied
Recently Ukrayinska Pravda reported that Borisov’s family purchased a villa and other properties in Spain valued at about 4.5 million dollars after martial law began in February 2022. The villa alone was reported at roughly 4 million euros. It was noted that Borisov traveled to Spain for 20 days at the end of December 2022.
The publication claimed that Borisov’s mother bought the villa, his wife acquired an office on Marbella’s main street, and several cars were listed. A Mercedes in the 2022 class was spotted near the property, valued at around 100 000 dollars. In an interview the military commissioner initially denied family ownership of property in Spain. After reviewing extracts from the Spanish registry, Borisov admitted his wife was involved in retail in Europe and that he did not know whether his family owned real estate there.
In April 2023 a former Ukrainian parliament member asserted that after February 24 2022 Borisov’s mother became the owner of a Marbella villa in Andalusia. The same source claimed the military commissioner benefited from a large shadow income tied to the sale of what were called white tickets. Amid these claims Borisov was removed from his duties and the State Investigation Bureau opened a case alleging abuse of power in the call to the front.
Later Natalya Gumenyuk, commander of the South operation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said Borisov returned to his post saying there was no reason for dismissal found in the internal inquiry.
delay service
Ukraine has been under martial law since February 24 2022. The following day General mobilization was announced by Zelensky. Martial law and mobilization periods have been extended several times, most recently by ninety days on May 2 2023.
Ukrainian media previously reported on men of military age being approached on the street and driven away, with some images showing regional recruitment officers acting in questionable ways. Most reports of such events originate from Odessa and the surrounding region.
The source named Country also reported bribes paid to staff at regional recruitment centers for issuing suspensions or exemptions from conscription. The alleged bribe amount can reach as high as twelve thousand dollars.