>> UKL Translations
Ukrains'ka pravda: War on Corruption Declared in Sumy Oblast
“We won’t be able to improve the situation without enforcing
punishments” – Yushchenko’s demands that need to be
reread
Ukrains’ka pravda, 10 February 2005
[Original
Text]
[translated by Olga Bogatyrenko for UKL]
The new governor of the Sumy region proved once again on Wednesday that
he had correctly understood Yushchenko’s orders given to him two
days prior. Mykola Lavryk, who today heads the government in the President’s
home region, fired a road policeman who agreed to take a bribe.
On the morning of his third day as the governor, Lavryk was driving to
work when he was stopped by a road policeman. “I am telling the
driver not to confess whose car it is but to give ten hryvnyas instead.
And the policeman took the money!” – Lavryk was telling excitedly
at a meeting of the regional government.
Lavryk took away the road policeman’s certification and called the
head of the regional police department, colonel Tokar, who now has to
hold a council meeting with all the employees about the unacceptability
of bribery. “The President spoke for two hours exactly about the
road policemen who should not accept bribes any more, yet they still accept
them!”
In the meantime, Lavryk fired the head of the local road police department.
In case of a repeated offense, the head of the city road police department
will be fired, and the next after him would be the head of the regional
road police department.
In brief, the President’s precept “my government will not
steal” is being materialized.
What is interesting is that the “Ukrainska Pravda” correspondent
was present at the meeting when Yushchenko was introducing Lavryk to local
officials. And, to tell the truth, Yushchenko spoke about the road police
maximum for about ten minutes, and not for two hours as Lavryk claims.
And it gets worse! If the new governor is to follow the president’s
order in regards to the road police in such a rigorous fashion, then all
the criminals would have nothing left to do but run for cover.
That is why “UP” decided to dig up the notes with the minutes
of Yushchenko’s speech in the Sumy regional government and to make
a favor to all the officials, bandits and all the other asocial elements
out there and to inform them that the stern eye of the new government
is watching them. That is, if Yushchenko in fact started what in Putin’s
words can be described as “polishing terrorists off in restrooms”
or “establishing order in the country”.
It is also useful to recall Yushchenko’s speech from an artistic
point of view. The new President is a good match to the old one, his speeches
should be recorded and published as a book of quotes.
Eloquence multiplied by decisiveness… He speaks with great calm
as well.
So, what does Yushchenko promise?
“In a year the police will not be accepting bribes! There will be
no suitcases full of money in this administration. Everything that had
been illegally privatized would return to its true owner!”
”Who is the owner of the firm? If this is a distant cousin of the
head of the administration – it needs to be recorded in brackets!
I assure you, that all the relatives, starting from the new president’s,
five times removed will file tax forms,”
That was Yushchenko in Sumy. The region is of a special importance –
the home region of the President, yet, for five and a half years it had
been under the administration of a person who represents the worst face
of the Kuchmism. This person is Volodymyr Shcherban, mistakenly included
by Yushchenko to the electoral party list of “Our Ukraine”
in 2002.
This region is characterized by the most rampant theft (except for maybe
Donetsk and Lugansk regions). And somebody needs to be held responsible
for this” – Yushchenko said. The major problem, as Yushchenko
sees it, is an old one, the same one he pointed out during his electoral
campaign, i.e., “bandits in the government”. To be more exact,
the bandits that are in collusion with the law-enforcement system.
There is no state institution responsible for honest and fair privatization
in the Sumy region.
Further, it becomes known that besides “Kryvorizhstal” reprivatization
is awaiting for yet another enterprise. It is the trade center “Berizka”
that had been sold for three times cheaper than its market price! We will
try to reverse this deal. Let us start with “Berizka”. “Write
it down” –Yushchenko said to the new governor of the Sumy
region.
”There have been three times more enterprises privatized in the
Poltava region than in the Sumy region. And it’s because here it
is common to drive enterprises to bankruptcy to pass the money on to a
son or a grandson!... Today’s price is twice lower than in the Poltava
region. And there are suitcases and bags full of money behind all this!”
”The industrial growth in the Sumy region is only 8%, while on average
in Ukraine it is about 12.5%. It is one third lower! In half of the districts
in the region the volume of industrial production has decreased. That
is because there are lazy and irresponsible people in the government there.
Look guys, I may be responsible for some of it, but I will also make sure
everybody who is responsible for this will be held accountable”.
”Half of all of the Ukrainian oil production takes place in the
Sumy region. Yet, only 92% are accounted for. Furthermore,the person who
is in charge of gas production – I don’t know who he is –
yet, I will make everything possible to dismiss him from the office! And
what about all those sons, young guys of 16-17 who are put in charge of
enterprises that have a budget of several dozens of millions of dollars?!”
”Listen to the saga about investments… In 9 months of the
last year the investment in the primary capital of the region reduced
by 3%. And that was at the time when overall intra-Ukrainian investment
grew by 30%. Everybody who contributed to the loss of national and international
investments has to be dismissed from office. The role of the government
is similar to the role of a door-man, it is to be standing on the street
and bowing to the people: “We have such a wonderful special for
you…” Why is it that we are doing everything the other way
around, why aren’t we going out to the street to bow to the people?”
”It’s not like we are impotent” – Yushchenko adds.
Here is what Yushchenko said about Shcherban’s obstructions to business:
“There are only 45 enterprises for 10,000 people living in the Sumy
region. It takes 62 certificates and references to open a single firm.
Tell me, who needs these references and certificates, what are they going
to do with them?
“I don’t want to be saying anything bad… Yet, what is
it that’s lacking – a pen to sign off a permit [to open a
firm], or a brain? I will tell you what’s lacking. Conscience. Those
are our people living here, not the cattle...”
And so on. This is the rhetoric of the new government. Overtly unusual,
sharp, even though uttered in a low voice sometimes. A very special rhetoric.
“About the criminal situation… Where do I begin?... The very
police is the problem If one is to look at the statistics, it seems that
there is an organized crime band captured every day, and some of them
are being taken in for the third time…”
”I am introducing the minister of internal affairs, Yurii Lutsenko,
we had a good talk with the people from the armed forces, and we agreed
that the police won’t accept bribes, and that a road patrol officer
won’t be accepting bribes right on the road, or on the side-roads.
It is humiliating. What is it, an income item? We are planning to drastically
change this service… A few years ago I witnessed police booths being
installed along roads, those booths had beds, sinks, and policemen would
be laying around in them doing nothing but collecting the bribes, and
then going home with a sense of accomplishment in the end of the day!
These policemen have run into a problem over the last month and a half:
they have accumulated the bribes, but they do not know how to launder
the money”.
Yushchenko has not told journalists in Kyiv his views on how to fight
corruption in law enforcement institutions. In the region he shed some
light on it:
“I will create inducements for everybody to inform me about illegal
activity in law enforcement institutions. We will establish anonymous
hot lines informing us about every such incident. We won’t be able
to improve the situation without enforcing punishments. Neither morals
nor threats will achieve anything. They think they are stronger! They
think that they are here to stay, and we are transient! I want to show
them that they are wrong.”
”When research was conducted here and in the West asking the question
“If you encounter a policeman in a dark alley at 11pm, what are
you feeling”, 90% of the good old Europe said they were feeling
secure. Yet, 91% of our compatriots are saying that they would feel scared.
This is a tragedy…
It happened so, that the devaluation of the police is the job of high-standing
military men. Yet, still, tens of thousands are ready to serve honestly.”
Yushchenko is worried by the collusion between the government and the
law enforcement, which instead of providing checks on each other, cover
up each other’s dealings.
“We won’t engage in “hunting” any more. You all
know who is in the gang – the prosecutor, the head of the regional
administration and the judge. Let us work to preserve the Ukraine that
has not been destroyed and spoiled yet. We won’t allow “land
cruisers” cruise our lands hunting hare or fox for fur…”
As it turned out, right before Yushchenko’s arrival to Sumy, local
prosecutors went into hiding and calling in sick right after his election
as the President.
“17 of regional prosecutors got seriously sick, and have been sick
for about a month and a half now! I gave the Security Service a task –
to find out what their diagnoses are, how many sick days they have used,
why they are not being treated effectively, and how soon they will be
applying to receive an invalid status” – Yushchenko was making
fun of them.
”I will prove it to you: the police won’t accept bribes any
more, you won’t accept bribes any more. The government will be transparent
and it will be successful. I want to carry out audit of all the privileges
and licenses, publicly announce the results of the audit and to revoke
the ones that that are sham.
”We will not betray those people who were sitting on the roofs of
trading booths at the time of a 120-thousand people meeting here in Sumy”
Besides being demanding to the law enforcement agencies, Yushchenko is
going to be demanding to businesses as well.
“We will devote the next quarter to the struggle against unprofitable
businesses. About a half of enterprises are greatly in debt. Once we identify
unprofitable businesses, we will apply special measures to them, we will
audit them quarterly”.
”I am for paying taxes voluntarily and not concealing them. And
if you get on the black list of those who conceal them – know, that
you won’t be trusted! Yet, if you do pay taxes, we will audit you
only once every three years.
And this is what Yushchenko said about the government: “I spoke
with heads of regional administrations in Kyiv, and I said that my requests
are simple: everybody must have 4-5- programs started and running during
the year of 2005. The goal of each is to reach people as fast as possible.
And I will be grateful if the people say that their lives have improved”
”The social sphere. Last year, not a single new school opened in
the Sumy region. The election was taken care of. Officials toured the
region to make sure that Yushchenko wouldn’t be given a chance to
speak… As if they were all on drugs…”
“A third of schools has no running water. Just like in my house
in Horuzhivtsi – there is a barrel, a tin cup on a chain, and a
little basin on the floor. Half of schools has no sewer system!!! Isn’t
it a shame! Guests have come, and, excuse me, you are taking them into
the elder-berry bushes to pee!”
Yushchenko also said the following.
He is going to exercise oversight over the officials with the help of
comparing what they promise to accomplish and what they do accomplish
in reality. Every official will be monitored.
“Monitoring reports are to be kept on the desk of the head of the
administration and on the desk of the President. When we hold monthly
meetings, we will not hold abstract discussions about nothing and getting
bored out of our minds… Each one of the 365 days we will live working
within the framework of a specific program and not in chaos”
PS: It seems that some of Yushchenko’s points are being implemented.
For now, while the governor of the Sumy region was dismissing the road
patrol officer, in Kyiv the Minister of Internal Affairs was firing the
chief road patrol officer of Ukraine, General Heorhienko.
|
