Today, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has voted for candidates to the Selection Commission of the Asset Recovery and Management Agency, who were previously selected by the Anti-Corruption Committee. They are Serhii Vernydubov, Mykhailo Ivanenko, and Yurii Kiskin.

What do we know about them?

All three are lawyers, but each has peculiar milestones in their activity. Serhii Vernydubov headed the “Novoil” company during 2005-2006, which appeared in criminal proceedings on tax evasion and abuse of power. His father is known to have been an MP from the Party of Regions and a confidant of the presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych.

Mykhailo Ivanenko worked as a lawyer at TOV Audit Alliance in 2011-2012, and during 2012-2015 — at the Astapov Lawyers law firm, where he later became a senior lawyer. By the way, the Anti-Corruption Committee has already put forward this candidate.

Yurii Kiskin, in addition to working as a lawyer, is an advisor to the general director of Ukroboronprom and chairman of the Board of the Association of Ukrainian Defense Manufacturers. He also ran for the Servant of the People Party in the Kyiv City Council of the 9th convocation.

Why is commission selection important?

As soon as the members of the Selection Commission are selected, the process of electing the head of the ARMA will begin, which has been delayed for two years. Absence of a manager is noticeably reflected in the efficiency the Agency’s work, in particular, there is still no strategic plan for its activity. 

After the commission is formed, the most interesting part begins. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine will announce a competition for the new head of the ARMA, and the commission will check the compliance of candidates’ documents with the requirements of the specialized law, conduct testing and interviews.

The Selection Commission is formed of representatives of various branches of government and state institutions. One person is delegated by the ministers of justice and finance, the Prosecutor General, the director of NABU each, and the head of Financial Monitoring; the Verkhovna Rada delegates three more. 

Read about the achievements and failures of the ARMA’s work over 5 years here.

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After the commission is formed, the most interesting part begins. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine will announce a competition for the new head of the ARMA, and the commission will check the compliance of candidates' documents with the requirements of the specialized law, conduct testing and interviews.