I get increasingly frustrated by those who like to trash ex-Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili for endangering Ukraine. For years, these same people have been explaining to me that reforms are hard and take a lot of time.
Can those folks please explain me now why anti-reforms are fast and furious in Ukraine?
Adjusted for inflation, Ukraine received as much technical assistance as Western Europe during the Marshall Plan — a plan that is credited with the quick recovery from World War II of Europe and the German Wirthschaftwunder.
The International Monetary Fund, World Bank, European Union and the United States have now all blocked their payments and programs over the lack of reforms or the regression of previous reforms.
But I suppose these are Russian agents like Saakashvili?
Who is really behind the slow pace of reforms and the speedy regression of those once deemed successful?
It is the president that appoints the National Bank of Ukraine governor and the NBU board members. The reform of the banking system and an independent NBU was supposedly one of the major successful reforms, but the president has left the position of governor unfilled for more than eight months now. The previous NBU governor Valeria Gontareva tendered her resignation in April, complaining that the owners of shuttered lenders and people she’s accused of money laundering escaped punishment.
Do you know another country where they don’t need a national bank governor?
He has two open vacancies for the NBU board where again he proposes nobody. He is even decreasing the remuneration of those still present in an attempt to get rid of them too.
Which begs the question: why?
Likely as long as Ukraine is in the IMF program, he needs approval for these nominations and he knows the corrupt people he plans to appoint will not be approved by the IMF.
Why would he want to regain control of the national bank?
They have about 3,000 lawsuits running, good for a total of $10 billion in bank-related fraud schemes.
Billionaire oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky is good for 500 cases worth $2.5 billion.
The best way to avoid the conviction of these respectable folks is to retract these silly complaints and to let ordinary Ukrainians cough up the missing $10 billion.
Of course, another minor detail is that there is $19 billion in cash, which gives room for election maneuvers.
Another supposed reform pearl was the ProZorro tender that saved $1 billion in costs for Ukraine.
The new law in process in parliament has a Ukraine-first clause that allows companies that have a local product proven through 23 different certificates to be up to 40 percent more expensive. Never mind that it is in violation of the political and trade Association Agreement with the European Union, the presidential party can vote for it.
Exiled billionaire oligarch Dmytro Firtash, fighting extradition from Vienna on U.S. corruption charges that he denies, is making good money again with his gas business.
A liquid natural gas monopoly was given to Viktor Medvedchuk, who is often referred to as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s man in Ukraine. The Secret Service of Ukraine, or SBU, is under the direct control of the president. It did a really nice job of eliminating all of Medvedchuk’s competitors by confiscating their LNG for months while accusing them of treason. Going out of business resolved the charges for those good folks.
Poroshenko has appointed three certified incompetent prosecutors general in a row. I have no idea of his track record in hiring competent people but his track record in hiring incompetent people is impeccable. The last one does not even have a law degree. You have to wonder, four years after the EuroMaidan Revolution, what former President Viktor Yanukovych has on Poroshenko if even he has not been convicted of any crime?
Stop looking for excuses.
The real saboteur of reforms is the president of Ukraine.
If you care about the war against Russia or about the ill-equipped freezing soldiers, then maybe you should realize that Ukraine needs a president that puts his country before his personal interests?
Luc Vancrean is an entrepreneur in Kyiy who graduated from Boston University.
