Reformer of the week – Roman Bregei
Roman Bregei, a judge of the Kirovohrad District Administrative Court, is running in the ongoing competition for the High Anti-Corruption Court.
Bregei ranks 29th out of 81 candidates currently competing for non-appellate jobs at the court.
In December, Bregei ran for a job on the High Council of Justice, promising to protect judges’ independence, but was not elected to the council.
Bregei has consistently criticized the High Council of Justice and the High Qualification Commission of Judges, and is seen as independent from the authorities.
In August he said he would file a lawsuit with the European Court of Human Rights to annul the selection of judges for the Supreme Court.
Bregei argued that the 2017 competition for the Supreme Court had been rigged and conducted with numerous violations – a claim denied by the High Qualification Commission.
Anti-reformer of the week – Igor Chaikin
Igor Chaikin, a judge at a court in the city of Kryvy Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, is running in the competition for the High Anti-Corruption Court.
He was identified by anti-corruption watchdogs on Jan. 9 as not meeting professional ethics and integrity standards. However, the Public Council of International Experts, a foreign expert panel, has decided not to initiate a veto on Chaikin’s candidacy.
Chaikin failed to declare his lease on a 1,856 square meter land plot in Kirovohrad Oblast and on a 61 square meter apartment in Dnipro Oblast in his 2014 asset declaration. Chaikin also declared a 213-square-meter house in 2014 but has not declared either the house or income from its sale in subsequent declarations.
Anti-corruption watchdogs also say there are doubts on whether Chaikin’s declared income matches his assets. Meanwhile, administrative penalties for traffic violations have been repeatedly imposed on Chaikin.
Chaikin’s wife, Olga Chaikina, failed to declare two houses and an apartment with a total area of 207 square meters in 2012 to 2015. She will not be vetoed by the PCIE either.
Chaikina had earned Hr 2.8 million by leasing real estate in 2012 before becoming a judge. However, since then she has not declared any income from property leases, and anti-corruption watchdogs concluded she was hiding that income. She has also repeatedly banned the filming of court hearings.
Chaikin and Chaikina did not respond to requests for comment.
