On Thursday, June 18, the Verkhovna Rada dismissed SBU Director Valentyn Nalyvaichenko with 248 votes. After lengthy negotiations with faction representatives, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko managed to convince the deputies to fire the top "SBU man." Now, a line is forming for the top post at 33 Volodymyrska Street.
Kolomoisky's shadow
Bankova has long wanted to remove Nalyvaichenko. According to 112.ua sources in the Verkhovna Rada, the initiative to remove the SBU head emerged three months ago.
"The SBU chief's dismissal order, undated, had been pending at Bankova for three months," the agency's sources noted, adding that Vasyl Hrytsak's candidacy had been tentatively approved within the same timeframe.
According to the agency's sources, one of the reasons for the resignation is the redistribution of contraband flows, among other things, in the ATO zone, as well as a conflict with his deputy, Yuriy Artyukhov, who was "forced into office by Bankova."
"Nalivaichenko was thrust into the role of deputy to Yuriy Artyukhov, who oversaw smuggling operations. The former head of the SBU had been trying for a long time to get his deputy replaced, but to no avail," 112.ua sources note.
In addition, Poroshenko, according to Ihor Kononenko, deputy chairman of the BPP faction, was dissatisfied with the fight against corruption in the department.
The story surrounding the BRSM oil depot also added fuel to the conflict. According to Nalyvaichenko, the smuggling was linked to the scandalous former Deputy Prosecutor General , Anatoliy Danilenko , who is considered close to the Presidential Administration.
"The former Deputy Prosecutor General is involved in criminal proceedings and facilitated criminal activity. I'm naming this deputy. It's Anatoly Danilenko," Nalyvaichenko stated.
112.ua's sources in the Verkhovna Rada note that with this activity, the head of the SBU has effectively sided with former Dnipropetrovsk Regional State Administration head Ihor Kolomoisky. It's worth noting that several months ago, Nalyvaichenko publicly hinted at the possibility of criminal prosecution of the former governor's team. Indirect confirmation of this change in trend was the SBU's reduced activity against former Deputy Interior Minister Serhiy Chebotar and its active, at least public, efforts against Danilenko. It's also worth noting that Nalyvaichenko's lawyers included the Samopomich and Radical Party factions, which are also linked to Kolomoisky.
Another reason for parting with Nalyvaichenko was his desire to start a political career.
"Poroshenko doesn't need someone with ambitions in this position. He needs a figurehead who will voice the numbers of detained Russian saboteurs and who is loyal to him. Gritsak, for example, is ideal for this role," 112.ua's parliamentary sources explain.
Endless bidding
However, it's one thing to want to appoint Hrytsak and fire Nalyvaichenko, and quite another to push through such an appointment on the parliamentary floor. As of June 16, there had been no votes for such an appointment. In particular, the UDAR group within the Petro Poroshenko Bloc categorically refused. Furthermore, a significant portion of the People's Front faction, as well as Oleh Lyashko's Radical Party and Samopomich, were not inclined to vote effectively.
"UDAR was extremely dissatisfied with the head of state's proposal. After all, according to the agreement, Nalyvaichenko was supposed to remain in his post as long as the group remained in the coalition," 112.ua's parliamentary sources explained.
As a result, as of Wednesday evening, only about 200 people's deputies were ready to vote for the resignation of the now former head of the special services.
In this regard, on Wednesday evening, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk gathered the leaders of the coalition factions in order to persuade them to vote.
The UDAR and Samopomich groups demanded that the Kyiv and Lviv mayoral elections be held in a single round, expressing their willingness to vote in favor of the issue in exchange.
"According to polls conducted by the Presidential Administration, Klitschko would beat any contender in a single round of elections, but in a two-round election, Vitaliy Vladimirovich might not remain mayor of Kyiv for long," 112.ua sources in the Verkhovna Rada note, adding that Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi is in a similar situation.
Bankova decided to promise to fulfill these wishes. 112.ua sources suggest that the mayoral elections at all levels will be held in a single round. The People's Front, for its part, was promised that Yatsenyuk's ministers would remain in their Cabinet positions until at least the fall in exchange for a successful vote. Furthermore, the interests of Pashinsky and Martynenko's groups in the energy sector were taken into account.
Samopomich was also promised the post of Lviv Oblast prosecutor and head of customs.
Meanwhile, despite these efforts, the resolution to dismiss Nalyvaichenko was only willing to support a minimal number of MPs. As of Thursday morning, Poroshenko had no guarantees of a successful vote to remove Nalyvaichenko from office. source
In addition, Euromaidan activist and MP Volodymyr Parasyuk stated that Rada deputies received hundreds of thousands of dollars for the resignation of the head of the SBU.
Valentyn Nalyvaichenko's resignation from his position as SBU chief was a premeditated operation, paid for by his opponents. Independent MP Volodymyr Parasyuk told Ukrainian journalists this. Furthermore, a video recording of another MP's text messages leaked to the media revealed that in exchange for Nalyvaichenko's removal, Samopomich leader Andriy Sadovyi would be given the Lviv prosecutor's office and the Lviv customs office. Meanwhile, Yulia Tymoshenko was left without funds and did not vote.
"Everyone in the Rada understands this is a political deal. They're collecting votes. Everyone in the faction wants to convince their deputies to vote 'yes.' Four members of parliament approached me and told me they were promised money if they voted for Nalyvaichenko's resignation. The amounts ranged from 200 to half a million dollars," Parasyuk said.
Meanwhile, a video of text messages between People's Front MP Serhiy Vysotsky and blogger Karl Volokh has surfaced online. The MP reports that Samopomich party leader Andriy Sadovyi received his "dividends" for the votes of his allies.
"Plus, Yulia isn't voting for the agenda. So, she wasn't getting paid," the deputy caught on video wrote to the blogger.
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