Amid the media hubbub of recent weeks (the war in Syria, the negotiations in Paris, the withdrawal of weapons, etc.), the news of personnel changes in the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers has gone almost unnoticed. Specifically, the government resigned Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Construction Roman Abramovsky. Abramovsky didn't appear on talk shows or make a fuss, but quietly (money loves silence) did his job. A sham of reforms. When asked by journalists about the reasons for his decision, Abramovsky modestly replied: "The Moor has done his job—the Moor must go."
Abramovsky's main task was to reform the corruption monster—GASK, or, as it's now known, GASI (State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate). It's no secret to anyone (especially builders and entrepreneurs) that GASK exists solely to extract bribes. Without its permission, no construction can begin, and no facility can be commissioned. The price varies depending on the conditions—from 1% to 10% of the cost per square meter. In other words, GASK officials enrich themselves by billions per year. This is how it was, is, and will be? During Yanukovych's reign, GASK was headed by Oleksandr Rybak, son of the Speaker of the Supreme Court of Ukraine. He was a member of the "family." A "plan" for bribes was established for the regions, and all the money was directed to Kyiv. A law was amended specifically to centralize GASK. Of course, they shared the profits with the prosecutor's office, local council members, and firefighters. The result is the construction of terrible buildings—like the high-rise building on Podil (11 stories instead of the planned four) or, even worse, dangerous ones, like the high-rise building on Gagarin Street in Odessa that burned in the summer of 2015. Almost two years since the "family" left, virtually nothing has changed. Except for the bank account numbers into which construction workers are forced to pay. The story of the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate (GASK) in Odessa has become a major story. Inspectors from the agency, under the guise of an unscheduled inspection, visited the store of an entrepreneur, a deputy of the Ananyiv Regional City Council. It "turned out" that the documents were in order. An "illegal building" that needed to be "legalized." The deputy recorded the conversation with the inspectors. The price for "resolving" the document issue is $1500. Otherwise, there are no documents and fines, fines, fines. The prosecutor's office simply laughed at the entrepreneur. True, GASK officials have become more cautious; the fear of being caught taking bribes is still present. As a rule, they don't accept money "directly." Bribes are arranged through "consultations" with trusted firms—all sorts of "...projects," research institutes, and so on. The result of all this is the construction of substandard buildings, the destruction of small and medium-sized businesses, and rising prices.
The reform of the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate (GASK) was supposed to be carried out by the ministry, specifically Deputy Minister Abramovsky (who, incidentally, the press linked to the construction businesses of both Taruta and Sasha the "Dentist"). Abramovsky immediately appointed a "young reformer," Alexander Kudryavtsev, to the post of chief GASK officer. He allegedly came from an honest construction background and, within a year, had "rooted out" corruption in the Kyiv Oblast GASK, which he headed. However, the deputy minister only read statements from Kudryavtsev himself. He didn't bother to review the prosecutor's office's report on the investigation of the department under Kudryavtsev's control. And the results, even "airbrushed," are as follows:
“In the Kiev region, inspectors of the arkhbudkontrol regularly violated the law. The prosecutor's office explained that officials of the Inspectorate of the State Architectural and Budgetary Control in the region, attracting citizens to administrative status, themselves violated the law. It was revealed that the anti-corruption legislation was being violated during the time of a special inspection of the individuals who are applying for the occupied position of government officials. “Zokrema, in the State Inspectorate, individuals who are also entrepreneurs are working.”
Incidentally, regarding combining the two: Kudryavtsev's biography, posted on the GASK website, mentions his work as director at TOP-NIVO. By an incredible "coincidence," this same TOP-NIVO received the most unexpected construction permits from GASK, and then commissioning of facilities. For example, in Sevastopol Square in Kyiv, NIVO planned to build a shopping center. Right next to a maternity hospital. Instead, they built a gas station. Right next to the maternity hospital. And commissioned it. Coincidence?
There's something you won't find in the official biography of the new head of the State Administrative Offenses Committee (GAS SK). Namely, his political past. In 2010, Kudryavtsev was elected to the Boryspil District Council. As a member of the land commission, he distributed land for the benefit of the capital's suburbs—for construction. He was a member of the Party of Regions faction. In 2014, he changed his ways and joined Batkivshchyna. True, he didn't completely change his ways. For a while, Kudryavtsev worked part-time as an assistant to a Party of Regions deputy. The "newcomer" Kudryavtsev is assisted by an old hand—Serhiy Drach, from his days as deputy.
So, the team of reformers was supposed to effectively disengage—that is, liquidate GASK and transfer its functions (or rather, return them) to the local communities. Simply put: the embezzlers were tasked with reforming themselves. Drowning the pike in the river.
The results are clear. Corruption is rampant. The law on "decentralizing" GASK, drafted by GASK and the Ministry of Regional Development, was successfully passed. Yes, but a lot of "buts" immediately surfaced.
First, regarding the functions of the new structures. At the end of June of this year, the Confederation of Builders of Ukraine stated that certain provisions of the law on the decentralization of powers in the field of architectural and construction oversight and the improvement of urban planning legislation, No. 320-VIII, which comes into force on September 1, 2015, pose a risk of corruption and a threat to the effective operation of construction companies. The Constitutional Court of Ukraine was concerned about certain powers of officials of the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate, whose bodies, in particular, will be able to independently revoke permits they have issued, including for the developer's violation of urban planning documentation requirements, the non-compliance of the construction project with design documentation and the requirements of building codes, state standards, and regulations. Furthermore, the Constitutional Court noted that the relevant decision will be made by an official of the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate, not by a court.
The Supreme Council didn't even consider another "reform" bill from Abramovsky and Kudryavtsev. The Supreme Council's Committee on Corruption deemed it corrupt. According to the committee's head, Yegor Sobolev, the proposal further expanded the powers of GAS inspectors to exert pressure on businesses.
There's quiet sabotage underway regarding the agency's decentralization. GASK is constantly drafting new regulations that are slowing down the process. And it's throwing up its hands, saying local councils are in no hurry to create similar structures within their own. This imitation of reform is about to turn into failure and disappointment. As one business representative noted, "We haven't just been brought to our knees. We're already down."
Abramovsky shied away responsibility by resigning. His protégés are in no hurry to leave their lucrative positions, probably waiting for someone to come for them. Either new law enforcement agencies, or, as was already the case in Odessa, people's lustrators. But not the comical kind with a trash can, but the real deal. With far more compelling arguments.
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