By KYIV. Sept 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved a bill on strengthening the independence and autonomy of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has said.
“Today, the government has approved a bill that strengthens the independence and autonomy of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. This is one of the structural beacons of the program of cooperation with the IMF and part of the state policy on the systemic fight against corruption,” Shmyhal wrote on the Telegram channel on Friday.
According to the head of government, the bill says that “SAPO will receive the status of a legal entity of public law,” it “clearly outlines the powers of the head with the status of deputy Prosecutor General.” The head of the SAPO will “independently determine the staff, structure and organization of the institution.”
The bill also “creates accountability and audit mechanisms with the participation of international experts and regulates the procedures for the competitive selection of prosecutors.”
“In this way SAPO will work more efficiently, and Ukraine will achieve greater progress in overcoming corruption. Soon the bill will be registered in Parliament,” the Prime Minister of Ukraine summed up.
