Author of the material: Tetyana Nikolayenko, Censor.NO.
How to endanger the Military Industry by reading only one resolution
Censor.NET has already written about the history of the state audit, which, after checking the contracts of the Ministry of Defense, found 2.5 billion hryvnias of “state losses”. The State Audit Service did this on the basis of Cabinet Resolution 335, which allowed the Ministry of Defense to conclude direct contracts with companies without holding auctions and determined the costing, but it did not mention profit, so the State Audit Service somehow decided that it was not legal.
The suppliers of the Ministry of Defense, having read this, “lost themselves from happiness”, but began to sound the alarm.
As a result, the Federation of Employers turned to the president and called for an urgent solution to this situation, because it could hurt the provision of the army.
The President instructed the Cabinet to figure it out. The Cabinet of Ministers decided to simply cancel Resolution 335. However, this did not solve the problem in any way, because during the entire period that Resolution 335 was in force, companies could “seize” illegal profits. Which is what certain bodies, in particular the SBI, have begun to do.
On September 8, the Federation of Employers appealed to the President of Ukraine again, where they pointed to a similar incident with the Pozhmashina company, from which the State Emergency Service in the Lviv region, as a result of the audit, now demands the return of 1.1 million profit for each delivered car. In a letter to the president, the Federation notes that such a situation may lead to the seizure of documents and the seizure of the company’s accounts.
“This attitude on the part of representatives of the country’s power structures undermines trust in the state and calls into question their desire to ensure victory in such a difficult war,” the Federation of Employers said in a letter to Volodymyr Zelenskyi.
The Federation again called on the President to help hold a joint meeting with the Cabinet and resolve the situation.
However, it seems that the Cabinet of Ministers considers the mentioned situation to be the responsibility of the State Audit Service, as well as a local problem of the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Economy.
Last week, the Ministry of Economy took its step to solve this situation.
Deputy Minister Nadiya Bihun gave the State Audit Service an explanation regarding Resolution 335.
Why does Regulation 335 have nothing to do with profits?
In particular, this document states that on February 28, 2022, Resolution No. 169 “Some issues of defense and public procurement of goods, works and services under martial law” was adopted, according to which the procurement procedure was simplified during the period of martial law.
At the same time, on March 20, 2022, Resolution No. 335 “Some issues of payment for goods, works and services to meet the needs of the security and defense sector under martial law” was adopted, which determined the specifics of forming a contract price based on costing. However, this resolution did not relate to the order of profit generation, but only to costing and reduction of paperwork.
While the procedure for obtaining profit was prescribed by another – 363 resolution.
In particular, it established that “the profit as part of the price is 1 percent of the costs of a domestic economic entity for the purchase of components (semi-finished products), special equipment (special equipment), works (services) from other economic entities and 30 percent of the remaining costs in the production cost of goods, works and services for defense purposes. Taxes and fees are not taken into account in the calculation of profit.”
The undermining of defense capability and the attitude of Portnov: why the state audit is not the problem of the Ministry of Defense, but of the state 01
In the case of procurement of defense goods, works and services by import through domestic business entities, the supplier fee is 3 percent of the cost of goods, works and services.
The Ministry recalled that in accordance with the amendments to the Law “On Public Procurement” and other legislative acts of Ukraine regarding defense and public procurement during the period of martial law, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has the right to determine the specifics of defense procurement during the period of martial law state
“At the same time, the procedure for planning, formation, location features, adjustment of defense procurements, control and reporting on their implementation, as well as the publication of information on defense procurements (hereinafter referred to as the Procedure), approved by Resolution No. 363, remained in force and was not canceled,” said the clarifications
A problem without a solution
It would seem that after this the issue should somehow be resolved. Or at least the State Audit Service should at least make a statement. But, as far as the newspaper knows, there is no reaction of the State Security Service to the letter of the Ministry of Economy, and the head of the State Audit Service Alla Basalayeva has not yet contacted the ministry.
Alla Basalaeva
Meanwhile, last Friday, the heads of several enterprises went to a press conference and called the story with the state audit a sabotage against the Military Industry and generally called for the liquidation of the State Audit Service as such.
In particular, the director of the private KVP “Ukrainian armored vehicles” Vladyslav Belbas, commenting on the scandalous audit, said that based on it, the SBI opened proceedings against the company, which could lead to “stopping the production of mortars and armored vehicles, as well as the supply of critically important 120 mm mines and 122 mm of shells, and therefore an increase in losses on the battlefield”
“DASU deliberately ignores the Law of Ukraine “On Defense Procurement” and Cabinet Resolution 363… The legislation of Ukraine allows enterprises to have a profit and include it in the calculation. The actions of DASU have signs of sabotage against the military-industrial complex and defense forces of Ukraine,” Belbas said.
“As we have learned, the SBI is now falsifying the case against our company, which will become a precedent for an attack on the entire military-industrial complex. With the legally null conclusion of the State Security Service in their hands, they want to accuse us of causing losses to the state due to the company’s profit. Taxes have been paid on the profits, and the funds are invested in the production of weapons to defeat the aggressor. The actions of the SDF will lead to the stopping of mortars, armored vehicles, the supply of critically important 120 mm mines and 122 mm shells, and therefore an increase in losses on the battlefield,” he emphasized.
He called on the President of Ukraine to prevent the destruction of the Ukrainian Military Industry.
“Ukrainian armored vehicles” manufactures “Varta” and “Novator” armored vehicles, resumed and relocated the production of 60-caliber mines, manufactures armor protection for “Bohdan” self-propelled howitzers and the “Neptun” missile complex, and also supplies long-range shots for “Bohdan”.
“They destroyed the positions of the Russian invaders on the Snake Island,” Belbas recalled.
Despite the fact that The New York Times published an article about the company’s price gouging, in fact UB’s prices are among the lowest among Ukrainian special importers.
Moreover, the DASU audit puts every special importer of weapons under attack. Thus, for each contract for the supply of weapons to the state company “Ukrspecexport”, the DASU had similar claims for 3% of the company’s revenues.
If the SBI is going to take advantage of such a precedent and come to every special importer of weapons through the audit of the DASU, it will simply endanger the combat effectiveness of our army.
At the same press conference, the owner of the “Textile-kontakt” enterprise, Olekandr Sokolovsky, stated that, in principle, the suppliers of the Ministry of Defense, most likely, will win cases against the State Audit Service in court. “But why is that? We have to spend time on creating new products, on expanding production, to raise people’s salaries. And we will spend money on a war with our own state,” he remarked.
The entrepreneur believes that the State Audit Service should be liquidated because it does not perform its functions efficiently.
“I don’t understand at all, if there is an accounting chamber protected by the Constitution, why is DASU needed, it is the former control and audit department. This system is ineffective,” Sokolovsky said.
Already on Tuesday, the state-owned enterprise “DerzhKKB “LUCH” sent official letters to Prime Minister Shmyhal, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Danilov, Minister of Strategic Industries Kamyshin and General Director of JSC “Ukrainian Defense Industry” Smetanin with a request to regulate the compliance of the conclusions of the State Audit Service with the legislation.
“In addition to the military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, State-owned Enterprise “LUCH” faced internal factors that make it difficult to fulfill the assigned tasks of developing and producing Victory Weapons. The far-fetched position of officials of the State Audit Service regarding the ban on including profit in the price created real threats to national security and state defense. The conclusions of the State Audit Service caused surprise and indignation, caused disagreements and lawsuits between the authorities during the martial law period, and the audit materials were handed over to law enforcement agencies, on the basis of which criminal proceedings were opened. The Russian Federation is primarily interested in the artificial emergence of these threats, in the interests of which SE “DezhKKB LUCH” has repeatedly faced obstacles in the form of fabricated slanders, bureaucratic obstacles to our work,” said the message on the Luch KB Facebook page.
During this time, the State Audit Service did not make public its position regarding the situation with the resolution.
Who is Alla Basalayeva and whose person is she?
Alla Basalayeva headed the State Audit Service on November 4, 2022.
It is interesting that even a month ago there were active rumors about the dismissal of the head of the State Audit Service Basalaeva. In this position, she replaced Gennady Plis, who was appointed to the Accounting Chamber instead of Valery Patskan.
Prior to that, Basalaeva was a member of the Central Committee, where she got to in 2018 based on the quota of the “Renaissance” party. According to the media, she was offered this position by Andriy Portnov’s associate from Bilge, Valery Pysarenko.
Basalaeva, by the way, has worked at the CEC since 2005. Represented the commission in courts. From 2008 to 2012, Alla Basalayeva worked as the head of the Commission’s interest representation department in the courts of the legal department of the CEC Secretariat. In 2012, she was appointed a judge of the Darnytskyi court by decree of Viktor Yanukovych. They say that she was promoted to this position by Portnov himself. “It is interesting that Alla Valentynivna received 88 points in the competition for candidates for the post of judge. It is difficult to call this result the best, because more than 100 candidates in the rating scored more points. It is also known that on February 3, 2015, disciplinary proceedings were opened against judge Alla Basalaeva, however , later closed,” Prosud reports. In addition, the mentioned publication had big questions about the origin of Basalaeva’s wealth. Back in 2019, Basalaeva was seen at the same table with Portnov’s friends. And already in 2021, she was an adviser to the Head of the SBU, Ivan Bakanov, who mysteriously disappeared in the first days of the full-scale invasion.
The undermining of defense capability and Portnov’s attitude: why the state audit is not the problem of the Ministry of Defense, but of the state 04
As you know, sanctions were introduced against Portnov in the USA in 2021. In March 2022, “Scheme” journalists established that the Portnov family owns real estate in Moscow together with friends of the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Lavrov. However, the Ukrainian authorities have not yet imposed sanctions against Portnov. Yesterday, on the air of Radio Liberty, the Secretary of the National Security Council, Oleksiy Danilov, again stated that he had not received the relevant submission.
“One person at Bankova really dislikes her, in particular, because she caused Reznikov’s dismissal with her audit,” says an interlocutor of Censor.NET in power circles.
“But the president trusts her, and she is not the one who gives the order on who to run after. However, I think she could explain to both the BEB and the DBR why it is not necessary to pursue companies because of Resolution 335. As for the resolution itself, I think that the situation it would be worthwhile to regulate the Cabinet by regulating provision 335 regarding contracts that were concluded earlier,” he adds.
However, at present, issue 335 of the resolution has not been resolved by either the State Audit Service or the Cabinet of Ministers. And this creates real problems for enterprises, and really undermines the country’s defense capabilities.
At the same time, if the SBI, due to this decision of the State Audit Office, comes only to certain enterprises, then this creates a reason to talk about the persecution of certain suppliers of the Ministry of Defense. It is possible that in order to remove unprofitable competitors.
The editors of Censor.NET asked the representatives of the State Audit Service for a comment on the situation with the profit, but there they asked to send an official request. The editors are ready to publish the position of the State Audit Service.
Fuente: espreso.tv
