«Anything good»: Director of the DHCS on the impact of the corruption scandal on international assistance to Mykolaiv

Dmytro Bezdolnyi, director of the Mykolaiv Housing and Communal Services. Photo: TRK «MART»

Commenting on the criminal proceedings regarding the possible misappropriation of budget funds, the director of the Mykolaiv Housing and Communal Services Department, Dmytro Bezdolnyi, said that corruption scandals can negatively affect the city's reputation in the eyes of international partners.

He said this during a conversation with a correspondent of NikVesti.

As a reminder, we are talking about an employee of the municipal enterprise «Self-supporting construction mechanisation section», the brother of the director of the Housing and Utilities Department, Serhii Bezdolnyi.

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«I cannot be responsible for the partners, but in any case, such scandals, as they say, do not have a good effect, so they should be as few as possible. Given the position of the city, the direction of the city, I certainly do not see anything good in this,» said Dmitry Bezdolnyi.

What has the Municipal Enterprise received from donors?

According to the reports of humanitarian aid provided to Mykolaiv for 2022-2024, the municipal enterprise «Self-supporting construction mechanisation section» received for the relevant period

• 1 x Specialised vehicle «Mercedes-Benz Atego 1024» from the City of Hanover worth ₴528 thousand.
• 1 x ARKEN ARK 8500XE diesel power plant from USAID worth ₴105 thousand
• 1 x JCB 4CX Sitemaste wheel loader from «UNOPS» worth ₴3.4 million.
• Mercedes-Benz Vito 116 CDI 4×4 BD16-7201 from the City of Sindelfingen worth ₴315 thousand.
• 1 x Household dosimeter-radiometer MKS-5 TERRA-P from USAID
• 2 x HP 255 G8 (3A5Y5EA) laptops from NGO «Agency of Effective Solutions»
• 5 x LENOVO Tab M8 (3rd Gen) tablets (from USAID)
• 4 x Bosch GBH 2-26DRE rotary hammers from the Danish Refugee Council in Ukraine
• 1 x GKS 190 electric circular saw from the Danish Refugee Council in Ukraine
• 4 x Bosch Professional GSR 180 LI cordless screwdrivers from the Danish Refugee Council in Ukraine.

As you know, an official of a municipal enterprise in Mykolaiv and a businessman from Lviv region were served with a notice of suspicion of misappropriation of budget funds. One of the suspects of corruption in the procurement of street lighting equipment for Mykolaiv turned out to be the brother of the head of the Housing and Communal Services Department of the Mykolaiv City Council. According to law enforcement officers, during the purchase of 65 street lighting control cabinets worth over ₴5.3 million, the budget of Mykolaiv lost almost ₴600,000 due to the so-called «kickbacks» — 13% of the amount excluding VAT. Investigators have already served a notice of suspicion to Serhii Bezdolnyi and the company's director Vasyl Protsyshyn.

In addition to the corrupt brother of the director of the Mykolaiv Housing Department, Olena Shapirko, the official's wife, works at the municipal enterprise «Self-supporting Construction Mechanisation Section» (hereinafter referred to as the SSCS).

In addition, Dmytro Bezdolnyi, Director of the Mykolaiv Housing and Communal Services Department, stated that he was considering resigning from his position for the duration of the investigation due to the suspicion served on his relative.