Maryna Bezrukova, the head of the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA), asked President Volodymyr Zelensky to prevent the "destruction" of the agency, in a Facebook post on Jan. 31.
Bezrukova and the Defense Ministry have been at loggerheads over the last week after Defense Minister Rustem Umerov suspended Bezrukova and appointed Arsen Zhumadilov as temporary director of the DPA on Jan. 24. His decision went against the agency’s supervisory board that voted to extend Bezrukova’s contract days earlier.
Umerov sparked backlash with accusations that he was violating the law by overriding the supervisory board. According to Ukrainian law, supervisory boards have the authority to unilaterally hire and fire the heads of state enterprises.
"The essence of the problem is not just an attempt to dismiss me, but the actual destruction of the institution in violation of all possible laws and Ukraine's international obligations," Bezrukova wrote on Facebook.
"Further delays threaten critically important supplies to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and destroy the trust of donors and partners," she added.
Dominic Culverwell
Addressing Zelensky, Bezrukova said the agency had stopped work because of the dispute. She requested he intervene to resolve the conflict legally, prevent the agency’s destruction, and ensure the DPA’s stable operations without "pressure, blocks, and attacks.”
On Jan. 25, Bezrukova’s name disappeared from the state enterprise register as director of the agency. Instead, Zhumadilov, who heads the State Rear Operator (DOT), was listed as the director despite his appointment only being temporary while Bezrukova undergoes an audit.
Now, Bezrukova’s name has returned to the register but she is listed as the restricted director "suspended from performing official duties for the duration of the internal investigation," the Justice Ministry said on Jan. 31. Zhumadilov is listed in the register alongside Bezrukova as the "temporary director" while the audit is ongoing.
The removal of Bezrukova from the register caught the eye of the Anti-Corruption Action Center (ANTAC), a watchdog. It believes the Defense Ministry was behind the amendment to "legitimize" Zhumadilov as the new director and subsequently cement the ministry’s control of the agency.
"It's like a classic hostile takeover," Tetiana Shevchuk, a lawyer at ANTAC, previously told the Kyiv Independent.
"They just want to take over, take the governance and the management (of the agency) into their hands, and quickly do something."
After the initial amendment was publicized by ANTAC on Jan. 27, Zhumadilov’s position in the state registry was changed to "temporary director." It was changed a third time on Jan. 29 to again list Bezrukova as the director after she submitted the necessary documents to the notary.
The DPA and Bezrukova stress that she is the lawful director of the agency and previously told the Kyiv Independent that she would not step down from her position.
On Facebook, she said that the dispute does not benefit Ukraine. "We should not have any enemies except Russia," she added.
On Jan. 27, ambassadors of the Group of Seven (G7) countries called for a swift resolution and urged uninterrupted continuation of weapons procurement. They also stressed the importance of adhering to governance standards.
On Jan. 28, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) launched a criminal investigation into the potential abuse of power and office by Umerov.
Kateryna Hodunova
(Updated: )
