The former head of the Department of European Integration and International Cooperation of the Ministry of Veterans' Affairs, Yevhen Shibalov, publicly announced his dismissal, declaring systematic insults by Deputy Minister Ruslana Velychko-Trifonyuk. This incident caused a wide response and ended with the dismissal of the official after an official inspection.
What happened?
On December 16, 2024, Yevhen Shibalov, who is a war veteran and journalist, stated that he was forced to resign due to constant offensive comments made by Ruslana Velychko-Trifonyuk. He went public with details of the unacceptable behaviour, noting that he had endured humiliation and insults for several months, including phrases that belittled his professionalism, dignity and personality.
"I found out a lot of interesting things about myself: that I'm a "dobboy ", " I don't do anything" and that I have a "soft dick". I held on as long as I could, but in the end I decided that I had no right to tolerate this," Shibalov commented on the situation.
The Ministry of Veterans Affairs reacted quickly, condemning any behavior that degrades the honor and dignity of a person. On January 6, an official inspection was started, and the very next day, January 7, 2025, Ruslana Velychko-Trifonyuk was dismissed from her position.
The statement of the Ministry of Veterans emphasizes:
"No circumstances can justify behavior that degrades the honor and dignity of a war veteran or any other person."
Yevhen Shibalov confirmed that he was insulted by Ruslana Velychko-Trifonyuk, but could not explain what could have caused such behavior. At the same time, he noted that his attempts to stop this bullying proved futile.
Currently, journalists are trying to get comments from the ex-deputy minister and the leadership of the Ministry of Veterans, but there is no answer yet.
The scandal at the Ministry of Veterans raised important questions about the attitude towards war veterans and the general culture of work in state bodies. The incident shows the need for stricter control over the behavior of officials and the creation of safe working conditions for employees, especially veterans.
