The Verkhovna Rada has registered a bill to strengthen the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO). The initiator of the bill was President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Information about this is available on the Rada's website.
The document provides for changes to a number of norms that were present in the previous bill No. 13414. In particular, the subordination of the SAPO to the Prosecutor General is canceled. According to the new draft, the agency will be subordinate to a separate head and his deputies.
The bill also prohibits the Prosecutor General from entrusting the pre-trial investigation of offenses that fall under the jurisdiction of the NABU to other bodies. The only exception may be objective circumstances that make it impossible for the Bureau to conduct an investigation under martial law. In such cases, the decision will be made by the head of the SAPO or the Prosecutor General himself.
The Prosecutor General is prohibited from giving written instructions to the detective and internal control units of the NABU or to SAPO prosecutors.
The draft law provides for mandatory polygraph tests every two years for employees of the NABU, SAPO, the Bureau of Economic Investigations, the Prosecutor General's Office, and the State Bureau of Investigation who have access to state secrets. The purpose of these tests is to identify possible actions in favor of russia. They will be conducted by the internal control units of these bodies. In addition, within six months from the date of entry into force of this law, a similar check of employees will have to be conducted by the Security Service of Ukraine.
Recall that on July 22, the Verkhovna Rada adopted, and President Zelenskyy signed, a law that significantly limits the powers of the NABU and SAPO. The document gives the Prosecutor General the right to take cases from the NABU, give detectives mandatory instructions, independently close proceedings against top officials, and also actually manage the SAPO. As a result, the head of the SAPO loses key powers, and the independence of anti-corruption agencies is under threat.
The NABU and SAPO warned that if the law comes into force, they will turn into units of the Prosecutor General's Office. This caused protests in several cities and a public outcry. After criticism, a group of parliamentarians submitted an alternative bill designed to restore the independence of anti-corruption agencies, and Zelenskyy said that he had agreed to a new text that should take these comments into account.
A number of European leaders criticized the decision to adopt and sign the previous bill. In particular, French President Emmanuel Macron and European Council President Antonio Costa called Volodymyr Zelenskyy on July 22 to, in a "last-ditch attempt," dissuade him from signing the law that limits the powers of the NABU and SAPO.
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