Dismissed Ukraine officials return to government posts

Parliament approved on May 19 the nomination of Ihor Bilous as head of the State Property Fund. He was nominated by Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who initiated Bilous’s dismissal in March from his position as head of the State Fiscal Service as part of a corruption probe. Meanwhile, Zorian Shkiriak has returned to government to serve as an advisor to Interior Minister Arsen Avakov. He resigned on May 12 from his post as head of the emergency situations state service after a botched rescue effort of Ukrainians stranded in Nepal following the deadly earthquake.

Zenon Zawada: Yesterday’s appointments confirm that nothing has changed in Ukrainian governance when it comes to personnel appointments. Those who are politically connected are immune to any repercussions from scandals, corruption allegations or poor performance. Instead the connected politicians get recycled and appointed to other posts. What’s particularly amusing in Bilous’s case is that he was nominated by the same politician who initiated a corruption investigation against him. That means PM Yatsenyuk cut a deal with the president’s team for his appointment. These ongoing policies bode poorly for efforts to reform governance and combat corruption.