Move Vasily Gonchar. How Chernivtsi forestry thieves removed an undesirable head of the forestry department.
Attempted attacks on the head of the Chernivtsi regional forestry and hunting department, Vasyl Gonchar, have occurred before, writes Igor Chernyak, Antikor.
But this time, they took on the matter decisively and with a vengeance. They brought in a group of local MPs to pressure the minister in charge, and he was unable to resist.
Moreover, even the leader of the Servant of the People, Elena Shulyak, urged Gonchar to be removed, reminding Ruslan Strelets of the behind-the-scenes agreements that preceded his approval for the position of Minister of Ecology.
Why did they take on such a simple regional forester director so tenaciously?
The fact is that Vasyl Honchar spent his entire term desperately fighting those trying to plunder Bukovyna's forests, literally defending every hectare the looters laid eyes on. This included representatives of the region's top government, whose powers had increased exponentially with the formation of military administrations.
Only the lazy haven't written or broadcast on television about the large-scale manipulation of humanitarian aid in Chernivtsi, orchestrated by the first deputy chairman of the regional VA, Bohdan Kovalyuk.
Artur Muntyan, the second deputy chairman of Serhiy Osachuk's Chernivtsi Regional Police Department, was served with a notice of suspicion after being caught several kilometers from the Ukrainian-Romanian border.
The case concerns the privatization of ambulances supplied by the Italian government to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and medical personnel, with their transfer to private hands.
The SBU then arrested the director of one of the hospitals, who was directly involved in this looting, and conducted searches in several offices and homes of deputies and department heads in the building with lions, as the building of the state, and now military, administration of the region is called in Chernivtsi.
But it seems that it has not been possible to cool down the hotheads who are rushing to line their pockets, taking advantage of the war and confusion.
Just a few days ago, Kyiv operatives and prosecutors conducted searches of Osachuk's office, where he is accused, among other things, of selling places on travel permit lists, including for men of military age. Allegedly, this was done to transport humanitarian aid and vehicles to Ukraine.
The list submitted to the State Border Service was extensive, with people supposedly traveling to scientific symposiums and even a poker championship. Many never returned.
The investigation, which reaches the regional leadership, is currently ongoing.
This includes the current attack by those already interested in the redistricting of local Carpathian forests against the stubborn head of Bukovyna's forestry sector, Vasyl Honchar. He literally fought for every hectare of forest, trying to defend state property.
But this time, local businessmen secured the support of two Bukovinian people's deputies - Elena Lis and Maxim Pavlyuk, and those with authority Elena Shulyak, and they still managed to "bombard" the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, Ruslan Strelets. As a result, the good manager and leader was removed from his post.
What was the reason for such a powerful campaign?
The initial price of the issue, meanwhile, consisted of the transfer to municipal, or rather private, ownership of the treasured forest tract along the Dniester floodplain in the Zastavnovsky, and now Chernivtsi, district of the region.
Now, having resigned, the scheme's participants appear to have decided to gain full access to the Carpathian forests of Bukovina. Truly, one man's war is another man's peace.
The regional deputies, who are well aware of the state of affairs in the Bukovina forests and the criminal manipulations of the regional government, categorically disagreed with this. They immediately issued a collective appeal to Mr. Strelets, which was signed by a convincing majority of deputies—30 out of 45, excluding those drafted into the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Removing Vasyl Honchar: How Chernivtsi forestry thieves removed an undesirable forestry director
The regional deputies emphasize that the forested area along the Dniester is unique. It has great recreational value, and with the development of the tourism industry, it could become a true Dniester Riviera, a goose that will lay golden eggs.
It's noteworthy that the father of the aforementioned participant in the scheme, Bohdan Kovalyuk, manages the Viknyanskaya Amalgamated Community (AUC) in close proximity to this forested area. Previously, regional deputies were outraged that Mr. Kovalyuk was handing over the lion's share of the budget allocated to the AUC to his father.
By the way.
Literally the next day, as the Verkhovna Rada newspaper "Voice of Ukraine" reports, a similar statement was addressed to Minister Strelets by members of all departments of the administration. Just imagine, over 1,600 signatories came to the defense of their leader, including those who are currently defending the Motherland on the front lines!
Two more statements were addressed to the minister by public organizations that are directly involved in defending the state status of local forests and environmental protection, as well as members of the management trade union committee.
Removing Vasyl Honchar: How Chernivtsi forestry thieves removed an undesirable forestry director
You'll agree, it's unlikely many leaders today can boast such total support. Indeed, to achieve this, you need authority, professionalism, and the respect of others.
In their appeals to the minister, those who signed on behalf of Vasily Gonchar asked the high-ranking official to thoroughly investigate the situation, to refrain from giving in to forest looters, and to protect state interests from criminals.
And also to prevent the provoked and undeserved dismissal of the respected and professional head of the Chernivtsi forestry department and the squandering of state forest lands. This is the main goal of the aforementioned instigators. But the man was removed.
Even though those forestry workers from Bukovina who are now serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces assured Minister Ruslan Strelets that after our shared Victory, they would certainly deal with those deputies and officials who looted while they were shedding blood, repelling aggression.
Below we present to your attention the appeals of Bukovina deputies and staff to Mr. Strelets.
As it turns out, the campaign to remove Vasily Gonchar was launched on a large scale, with a candidate for his position already approved.
A certain Nikolai Orendovich, an associate of the former MP from Poroshenko's party, Ivan Rybak.
The man was so encouraged that even before Gonchar's dismissal, he was already making the rounds of the district departments of the Chernivtsi region forestry department, promising deputy positions left and right to anyone who supported him.
Those informed claim that Orendovich knows how to campaign for himself. He demonstrated this both as Rybak's technical candidate in the Supreme Council elections and when he ran for the regional council as a member of Palchevsky's Victory Party.
Moreover, he twice even competed directly for the positions of Chairman of the State Forestry Agency and his deputy. He also persistently applied for the position of Head of Forestry Administration not only in Chernivtsi, but also in Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia Oblasts.
Only a high-profile criminal case involving his father, also a forester, dampened the ardor of this aspiring social climber. He, too, was forced to resign from the system.
Well, thanks to the efforts of a group of people's deputies and regional officials caught stealing humanitarian aid, Nikolai Orendovich has been given a second chance to get his hands on the Bukovina forests. Apparently, they're supposed to auction them off together.
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