Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has proposed a lot of anti-corruption initiatives, many of which are already working, the Presidential Administration told the Kyiv Post in a written response.
While preparing a front-page story headlined “Monopoly
Nation,” published in the Nov. 8 print edition, the Kyiv Post asked the
Presidential Administration several questions about corruption in public
procurement and market privileges enjoyed bycompanies close to those in power.
The administration’s written responses came on Nov. 8, after the story was
published.
“Since 2010, it has become a matter of principle for
the state leadership to move from declarations to specific measures on
combating and prevention of corruption,”the president’s press service said. “Almost
every legislation initiative of the president of Ukraine include
anti-corruption norm.”
Some $6.5 billion, more than 12 percent of the
government’s annual budget, is lost through corrupt or non-transparent public
procurement schemes, according to the president and the Security Service of
Ukraine.
As examples of the president’s anti-corruption efforts,
the press service cited the approval of a national anti-corruption strategy by
2015, a decrease in the number of state regulations, a new criminal code,
simplified tax collection and several other anti-corruption laws passed in
2013.
“These laws reviewed the prevention and
anti-corruption mechanisms and procedure of confiscation, regulated criminal
responsibility for corruption deeds,”the press service said.
Regarding corruption in public procurement, the
president’s statement cited two passed in 2012 to reduce the misspending.
One of them prescribes the creation of “electronic
reverse auction that provides procurement on competitive terms in real time.”But
this new mechanism is yet to be implemented, the presidential press service
said.
Secondly, in August, the Cabinet of Ministers approved
a strategy for better regulation of state finances, thanks to which Ukraine
hopes to renew receiving the financial help from the European Union. From this
year through 2015, Ukraine is eligible for some 210 million eurosto developits
energy sector, energy efficiency, environment preservation, transport and
border management.
The press service added in its response that the Anti-Monopoly
Committee designated to prevent monopolization and market privileges has
intensified its work in recent years. That same Anti-Monopoly Committee,
however, failed to give a timely response to the Nov. 8 story “Monopoly
Nation.”
Kyiv
Post staff writer Oksana Grytsenko can be reached at [email protected]
