The Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) has passed a law restoring powers to Ukraine’s key anti-corruption agencies – the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).

The Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) has passed a law restoring powers to Ukraine’s key anti-corruption agencies – the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).

Source: Parliamentary session of 31 July

Details: A total of 331 MPs voted in favour of the presidential bill (votes by political party):

Servant of the People – 214 MPs;European Solidarity – 27 MPs;Fatherland – 4 MPs;Voice – 16 MPs;Platform for Life and Peace – 17 MPs;Restoration of Ukraine – 9 MPs;For the Future – 11 MPs;Trust – 17 MPs;Non-affiliated MPs – 16.

No MPs voted against the bill, and no one abstained. Nine MPs did not vote.

Under the new law, SAPO will now independently oversee the procedural supervision of NABU investigations – and is no longer under the control of the Prosecutor General.

Nevertheless, the law mandates that within six months of it taking effect, the Security Service of Ukraine must conduct background checks on employees of NABU, SAPO, and other agencies with access to state secrets to identify any possible cooperators with the aggressor state.

Additionally, staff from these agencies will undergo internal polygraph testing every two years, using a methodology approved by the Security Service of Ukraine.

Background:

On 22 July, the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) voted in favour of draft law No. 12414, making NABU and SAPO dependent on the decisions of the prosecutor general. Zelenskyy signed it into law that evening.Protests were held in many cities across Ukraine after the law was passed.Following this, Zelenskyy pledged to submit a draft law to the Verkhovna Rada that would “empower the law enforcement system” and preserve “all provisions necessary for the independence of anti-corruption institutions”.NABU said the bill would reinstate all the powers and guarantees of independence for NABU and SAPO.On 30 July, the Verkhovna Rada’s Law Enforcement Committee unanimously supported presidential draft law No. 13533, which restores previously revoked powers to anti-corruption agencies. This same committee had hastily introduced “anti-anti-corruption” amendments to the bill passed on 22 July.On the morning of 31 July, citizens gathered outside the Verkhovna Rada for a peaceful rally in support of restoring NABU and SAPO’s independence.

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