Zelensky requests Dnipropetrovsk police chief dismissal

The police chief of Ukraine’s third most populous
region of Dnipropetrovsk, Vitaliy Hlukhoveria, was recommended for dismissal by
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 27 for an alleged abuse of
authority incident. “Shocking is the cynicism of the behavior of the Old Elite,
which is truly convinced – along with its service personnel – that it is above
the law,” Zelensky said of the incident, which was registered that day for
investigation by the State Bureau of Investigations (SBI), a body created in
November 2018 to investigate the crimes of high-ranking officials.

On Sept. 12, 2018, traffic police in the city of
Dnipro stopped a vehicle driven by Hlukhoveria’s driver, who was informed that
he ignored a Stop sign. The driver resisted their commands and after several
minutes, armed officers with a special police unit arrived at the scene and
detained the traffic police officers. Video of the incident, recorded by the
traffic police, was since leaked to the Internet. Zelensky submitted his
dismissal request to Interior Minister Arsen Avakov, who will be replaced once
the new Cabinet emerges, likely by early September.

A Kyiv district court ruled on July 26 to place under
house arrest Dmytro Holovin, the former police chief of the Odesa region who is
suspected of organizing the theft of cigarettes worth an estimated UAH 50 mln,
which were also classified as police evidence at the time. Another suspect in
the scheme has been arrested, while two others are missing, including the
deputy police chief. The other missing suspect, Valeriy Kapitanchuk, has fled
abroad, the pravda.com.ua news site reported.

Zenon Zawada: Zelensky
has spent this month targeting for dismissal and prosecution high-ranking
police officers and state customs officials. Although Holivin’s arrest did not
involve the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), directly controlled by Zelensky,
it did involve the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and Specialized
Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, who were personally ordered by the
president to show results in the first three months of his presidency. We are
confident that the arrest of Holovin, and likely arrest of Hlukhoveria, would not
have occurred had Zelensky not been elected. So these are positive developments
for rule of law.

Zelensky’s team has produced several videos for his
YouTube channels featuring his public meetings with customs officials,
including his personal inspections of their activities and demands that they
submit their resignations. These videos have been drawing millions of viewers,
creating the impression that Zelensky is truly the first Ukrainian president to
be seriously addressing corruption. It has yet to be seen whether customs
officials will comply with Zelensky’s resignation demands, or will fight them
in the courts or even at their offices. But for the time being, Zelensky has
renewed faith and hope in the corruption-plagued government that hasn’t been this
high since the Orange revolts of 2004.