{"id":36862,"date":"2025-08-21T10:42:04","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T07:42:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/?p=36862"},"modified":"2025-09-19T16:46:22","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T13:46:22","slug":"director_economic_security_bureau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/director_economic_security_bureau\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThe only right decision\u201d \u2014 Expert on Tsyvinskyi\u2019s appointment as Director of the Economic Security Bureau"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe only right decision\u201d, says Bohdan Slutskyi, an expert at the Centre for Economic Strategy, commenting on Ukrainian Radio about the appointment of Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi as Director of the Economic Security Bureau (ESBU). According to him, several factors contributed to this outcome: the protests against draft law No.12414 concerning NABU and SAPO, the reaction of Ukraine\u2019s international partners, and the IMF\u2019s \u201cstructural benchmark\u201d requiring the government to appoint a new head of the ESBU by the end of July. As a result, Tsyvinskyi underwent an additional vetting process, and the Bureau finally has a leader. \u201cAll the tools are in place \u2014 now Tsyvinskyi\u2019s ESBU must deliver results\u201d, Slutskyi concludes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA combination of factors\u201d<\/b><\/h4>\n

On August 6, the government finally appointed Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi as Director of the Economic Security Bureau. Was this the result of how the situation with attempts to undermine the independence of anti-corruption institutions was handled \u2014 to demonstrate the government\u2019s consistency and determination? Or simply the result of mounting pressure?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I would say the latter \u2014 and I would add that it was a combination of factors. There was no single trigger. On the one hand, we had the events of July 22 and July 31 (President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed law No.13533 \u201cexpanding the powers of NABU and SAPO\u201d, following the adoption of draft law No.12414, which sparked protests and public criticism \u2014 CES). For the first time since the full-scale invasion, people took to the streets in protest \u2014 and that is painful, I think. We may later see this reflected in approval ratings and in public expectations. At the same time, there was the IMF benchmark requiring the EBSU director to be appointed by the end of July. There was also sustained public and international attention \u2014 not just from Ukrainian media, politicians, economists, and lawyers, but from abroad as well. It kept growing louder. Ultimately, Tsyvinskyi had a meeting with the new Prime Minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, and they agreed he would take a polygraph test, even though it is not mandated by law. In the end, the polygraph cleared the way for what I believe was the only right decision.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe polygraph was invented to put things in order\u201d<\/b><\/h4>\n

Was the polygraph test part of the official competition rules, or just an additional step \u2014 perhaps a last attempt to disqualify him?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I think it was the opposite. It wasn\u2019t to remove him, but rather to create a narrative: that he passed the test and proved his integrity. There needed to be something to show that the delays were not for nothing, that concerns had been addressed. There had been rumors about his integrity, alleged relatives in Russia, even an SBU letter that nobody ever saw in the public domain. A way out of that situation had to be found. The controversy around NABU and SAPO, the IMF benchmark, and signals from donors \u2014 warning of possible complications with further financing \u2014 all combined to push for a resolution. The polygraph served as that resolution, giving the process a positive ending.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHis perspective matters\u201d<\/b><\/h4>\n

During our podcast on Sunday, Business Ombudsman and former Canadian Ambassador Roman Waschuk pointed out that Canada has far fewer anti-corruption institutions, and that overturning the results of an open competition would be unthinkable. Does this appointment leave a lasting negative impression?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I think it does, based on what I see and the language being used to describe the whole situation. And I agree with Mr. Waschuk. It\u2019s unfortunate if he does not continue for another term \u2014 he is highly professional, with immense experience. His perspective is valuable, not just subjective but grounded in concrete data. He works daily with business cases, publishes detailed quarterly and annual reports, and actively engages with the ESBU, tax authorities, and customs to advocate for businesses and resolve disputes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe procedure matters more than the name\u201d<\/b><\/h4>\n

Now that the ESBU will be responsible for investigating all economic crimes, will conflicts arise with agencies previously handling these cases?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

This is not about Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi personally. Some say international partners pushed specifically for him. In reality, the key issue is that the procedure was followed. The individual\u2019s name is secondary. If he won a transparent competition with the highest score, then he should be appointed. But appointment is only half the battle. He now needs to use the legal powers at his disposal: appoint deputies, build a vertical structure, fill vacancies, and re-certify current staff in both the central office and regional branches. That won\u2019t happen in a week or two \u2014 it will take at least a year or more. He must establish recruitment and re-certification commissions, which involves thousands of employees and is inherently a long process. To succeed, he needs a strong team to rely on \u2014 no matter how skilled he is, he cannot manage this alone. He also has to communicate his every step clearly, so that both society and business understand his actions. That will make his job far easier.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA complex task\u201d<\/b><\/h4>\n

The recent corruption scandal involving the head of the Energy Customs, who was suspended from office, illustrates the kind of challenges Tsyvinskyi will face. Do you agree?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Yes, I agree. That\u2019s why it is also critical to move forward with the competition for a new head of customs. There is no single institution or \u201cmagic law\u201d that can solve all problems. This requires a comprehensive approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAll the tools are there \u2014 now it\u2019s time to deliver\u201d<\/b><\/h4>\n

The law establishing the ESBU was passed back in 2021, the competition for its head took a year and a half, and now, in 2025, it will take another year or more to fully form the institution. Are you not concerned that time is passing, yet society has still not seen any tangible results?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Of course, we would all like to see quick results. But realistically, when dealing with thousands of employees, you cannot fire everyone and instantly recruit a new, clean, independent, and talented staff. They must be identified and re-certified \u2014 that takes time. Still, this does not mean personnel issues should overshadow the actual work expected of the Bureau. Both tracks can proceed in parallel. The law sets clear powers, and the Bureau has the capacity to be effective. All the instruments are in place. Now it\u2019s time to show results.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source: <\/span>Ukrainian radio<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe only right decision\u201d, says Bohdan Slutskyi, an expert at the Centre for Economic Strategy, commenting on Ukrainian Radio about the appointment of Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi as Director of the Economic Security Bureau (ESBU). According to him, several factors contributed to this outcome: the protests against draft law No.12414 concerning NABU and SAPO, the reaction of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":35348,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[149,200],"tags":[550],"experts":[642],"news_type":[179],"class_list":["post-36862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogs-en","category-news-list-en","tag-corruption-en","experts-bohdan-slutskyi","news_type-blog-type"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36862"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36863,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36862\/revisions\/36863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35348"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36862"},{"taxonomy":"experts","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/experts?post=36862"},{"taxonomy":"news_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ces.org.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news_type?post=36862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}