The government formally appointed Viktor Pavlushchyk as the new head of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP), said Taras Melnychuk, the government's representative in the parliament, on Feb. 27.
Authorities also approved the appointment of Oleksandr Kharlov as the first deputy head of the Odesa Oblast State Administration, Oleksandr Kokhan as a deputy head of the Rivne Oblast State Administration, Oleksandr Tereshchenko as a deputy head of the Rivne Oblast State Administration for digital development and transformation, and Andrii Danyk as the acting head of the State Emergency Service.
Pavlushchyk was chosen to lead one of Ukraine's key anti-corruption agencies last week, with anti-corruption activists criticizing the selection process but praising the eventual choice.
NACP's new chief has a legal degree from the Security Service of Ukraine's (SBU) National Academy and a business administration degree from Kyiv National University.
From 2008 to 2015, Pavlushchyk was an employee of the SBU. He became a National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) detective in 2015 and headed a unit that investigated cases against judges and prosecutors.
Specifically, he was involved in investigating corruption cases against controversial Prosecutor General's Office investigator Dmytro Sus, discredited judge Pavlo Vovk, ex-Supreme Court head Vsevolod Knyazev, and judges of the Kyiv Court of Appeal.
Vadym Valko, an expert at the Anti-Corruption Action Center, a Kyiv-based watchdog, told the Kyiv Independent that, according to his sources, Pavlushchyk had been an effective employee, and "it would be difficult" for the authorities to influence his work through pressure.
Oleg Sukhov
(Updated: )
