03 June 2021, Thursday, 13:19 118

Zelenskyy Suggests Rada Put Political Life Participants Having Influence On Media, Monopoly On Market, And Assets Worth 1 Million Living Wages On Oligarch List

Редактор: Daria Zubkova

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has suggested that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine put participants in political life, those having a significant influence on the media, having a monopoly on the state market, and assets worth over a million living wages on the list of oligarchs.

That follows from bill 5599 dated June 2, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

Participation in political life envisions holding the office of President, being a member of the parliament or government, occupying the position of the head of a central executive body, prosecutor general, chairman of the Security Service, National Bank, or the head of a subsidiary body established by the head of state.

Besides, the participants in political life are also persons associated with the aforementioned officials, the leadership of political parties and those financing their activity, political agitation or holding of political meetings and rallies.

Particular influence on the media means that a person is either its beneficiary or controller.

If the owner loses his status after the adoption of this law and before its enactment and the media company is transferred to another person associated with him, such former owner will anyway be considered a person having considerable influence.

Such an owner will not be considered to have considerable influence on the media only if he/she passes the media company to a person with a clear business reputation.

Possession of a monopoly on the state market means that a person is an ultimate beneficiary (controller) of an entity, who is subject to natural monopolies or occupies a dominating position on the nationwide trade market and enhances or supports such a positions during the year.

The cost of assets of a person to correspond to the oligarch status has to exceed one million living wages set for able-bodied persons as of January 1 of the respective year.

At the moment the amount is UAH 2.27 billion.

At the same time, accounted are not only his/her own assets but also the assets of persons and entities he/she is a beneficiary of, except for assets in the media.

The National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) will declare such persons to be oligarchs based on their correspondence to these criteria.

The decision will be taken based on a recommendation by a member of the NSDC, Cabinet of Ministers, National Bank of Ukraine, Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) or the Antimonopoly Committee.

Such a recommendation becomes a reason for putting persons having considerable economic or political powers on the Oligarchs List.

Those on the Oligarchs List are banned from paying fees in support of political parties and from being a buyer in a process of privatization.

Those on the List will have to submit e-declarations, and the public servants contacting with them will have to submit a declaration on contacts.

To be excluded from the List, one should lose two out of four oligarch indicators.

The law will be enacted in six months from its taking effect.

It will lose force in 10 days after its enactment.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, Zelenskyy hopes that the adoption of the law on the status of oligarchs will let solving the issue of poverty in Ukraine.