Afrasianet - Ukraine's Justice Minister Germani Galushenko, who held the energy portfolio for four years, has been suspended over a major corruption scandal that has rocked the country's energy sector.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Sveridenko announced on Wednesday the suspension of Justice Minister Germani Galushchenko, who held the energy portfolio for four years, over a major corruption scandal that rocked the country's energy sector.
"It has been decided to suspend German Galushenko's duties as justice minister," the prime minister said on social media platforms, the day after he was accused by Ukrainian prosecutors of receiving "personal benefits" from Timur Mendych, a key ally of President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is accused of orchestrating a scheme that led to the embezzlement of $100 million in the energy sector.
The charges against Timur Mendych are the latest episode in a wide-ranging corruption scandal that includes suspicions of embezzlement of huge sums of money in the energy sector, while electricity infrastructure has come under intense Russian attacks.
Mendych owns a stake in the media company Quartal 95, which Zelensky founded. "Mendych managed the accumulation, distribution and legalization of funds obtained through criminal methods in Ukraine's energy sector," the anti-corruption prosecutor's office (Sabo) said.
During a hearing before the start of the trial of another man accused of involvement in the plot, she said the suspect had used his "friendly relations with the president of Ukraine" in his criminal activity.
This came after the National Anti-Corruption Authority (NABO) announced that it had uncovered a corruption scheme in the energy sector that included $100 million that was laundered, and confirmed the arrest of 5 people and the indictment of 7 others.
NABO carried out large-scale raids after a 15-month investigation into the energy sector, which has been under regular attack since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022.
The head of the anti-corruption commission's investigative team, Oleksandr Abakumov, told Ukrainian state television that Timur Mendych had left the country just before the raids began.
Accusations of embezzlement in the energy sector as Russian attacks continue and widespread power cuts have fueled public anger.
President Volodymyr Zelensky faced harsh criticism from Ukrainians and Brussels over the summer when he tried to bring the two independent anti-corruption bodies, NAPO and SABO, under government control.
Opinion poll: Ukrainian public's trust in Zelensky falls to the lowest level
Public confidence in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky falls to a six-month low due to corruption and his handling of the war, a poll shows.
Public confidence in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has fallen to a six-month low after rare wartime protests over a move to curb the power of anti-corruption bodies, according to a poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology.
The poll showed that 58% of Ukrainians currently trust Zelensky, down from an 18-month high of 74% in May and 67% in February and March.
The institute found that those who do not trust Zelensky cited corruption and his handling of the war as the main causes, at 21 percent and 20 percent, respectively.
Zelenskyy's wartime lowest confidence rating was 52 percent in December, the institute said. The latest poll surveyed more than 1,000 respondents across government-held Ukraine.
The poll is the first by a major Ukrainian polling firm to gauge public sentiment since Zelensky sparked outrage by placing agencies under the authority of a carefully selected prosecutor.
Thousands of Ukrainians demonstrated in Kyiv and other cities in late July against the hasty measures, prompting Zelensky and his ruling party to quickly back down.