Published 03:32 IST, October 31st 2020
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy decries corruption ruling as 'unacceptable'
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called an urgent meeting of the National Security Council on October 29 to discuss a court ruling on anti-corruption law
- World News
- 3 min read
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called an urgent meeting of the National Security Council on Thursday, October 29, in a bid to discuss the fallout of a Constitutional Court ruling seeking to abolish some anti-corruptions laws.
As per Deutsche Welle News reports, the court on Wednesday dismissed punishment for politicians who falsely declare their assets. The court also took away the powers of the country’s anti-corruption body to check officials’ declarations and hold them accountable.
While calling the move "unacceptable", the presidential office, in a statement, said that recently there have been signs that certain entities are trying to revise key parts of the social contract in Ukraine which provide for zero tolerance for corruption and any form of opacity in public administration.
In the wake of the "crushing blow" to Ukraine’s anti-corruption effort, Zelenskiy is due to urgently present draft laws to the parliament that could be used to avert the situation.
The Ukrainian president said that it is necessary to have an "immediate and rigorous" assessment of the decisions of certain subjects, whose actions are increasingly dangerous to society.
According to reports, last week, Zelenskiy had promised to keep the fight against corruption on track, vowing to use his powers to preserve or reinstate the reform requiring officials to declare their assets and face prosecution for illegally amassing wealth.
‘Ukraine must not go back to the past’
Meanwhile, the head of the National Agency for Preventing Corruption (NAZK), Oleksandr Novikov, warned that lawmakers, mayors, ministers and the president can put down any income they want with impunity due to the ruling.
The anti-corruption watchdog also said that the ruling would effectively block the procedure to swear-in local officials following local elections. Moreover, the head of the country’s national defence council, Oleksiy Danilov, said that ruling was a threat to national security.
Corruption is one of the biggest issues among Ukraine and its backers in the West. While condemning the Constitutional Court’s ruling, the ambassadors of the G7 nations, which include the US, the UK, Germany, France, Canada, Japan and Italy, also said that they stand with the Ukrainian people.
While taking to Twitter, the G7 nations said that too much progress has been made and that "Ukraine must not go back to the past". Furthermore, the European Union has also reportedly warned that it could withdraw the visa-free travel regime if Kyiv failed to tackle the problem.
Updated 03:32 IST, October 31st 2020