The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has introduced a new position — the Government Commissioner for Customs Reform. The former head of Ukrposhta Ihor Smilyansky was appointed to this key role. However, the decision caused a mixed reaction in society.
Smilyansky, who headed Ukrposhta since 2016, is known not only for his management decisions, but also for a number of scandals. In 2020, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) opened criminal proceedings against him. The case was initiated due to suspicions of abuse of official position and possible bribery during the organization of international postal shipments.
In the same year, Smilyansky made an attempt to sell the historic building of the Main Post Office in the center of Kyiv, citing the lack of funds for repairs. The asking price was 1 billion hryvnias, but the idea caused a barrage of criticism.
"Reforms" with millions of salaries
During the period of leadership of "Ukrposhta", Smilyanskyi received a salary of 836 thousand hryvnias per month, which became the object of public indignation. This contrasted especially with the salary of an ordinary postman, which was only 6 thousand hryvnias. Smilyanskyi has repeatedly argued that such a postman's wage is acceptable, which has raised even more questions about his approaches to social policy.
Despite the scandals, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal expressed confidence in the new commissioner, stressing the importance of customs reform as a key element in the fight against corruption and optimization of economic processes.
However, the decision to appoint a person with such a controversial background leaves many questions. Will Smilyanskyi be able to live up to expectations and overcome corruption in the customs sphere? Or maybe we are in for another series of scandals with multi-million payouts and questionable decisions?
