© Screenshot from the video According to the deputy, law enforcement officers recorded the involvement of officials in the scheme, but they were not punished, but received even higher positions.
During the construction of defensive fortifications in the Donetsk region, which were being built by the Poltava Regional Military Administration and which cost almost 400 million hryvnias, officials embezzled half of this amount, according to the investigation by People's Deputy Yaroslav Zheleznyak.
“It so happened that we came across photos of what the Poltava OVA built for almost 400 million. But the military and experts unanimously say that this looks more like the installation of sticks than normal fortifications that should work to protect our military,” the deputy noted.
Zheleznyak recalled that the Poltava Regional Military Administration received the right to build a fortification in the Donetsk region in February 2024. Then the OVA construction department concluded 16 contracts for a total amount of over 370 million hryvnias. Moreover, with only one company – Enki Construction LLC.
In the photo of the constructed fortifications, in particular, the open location on the terrain and the complete absence of camouflage means are striking, which makes this position very vulnerable. There is also no drainage. And in general, the position is absolutely vulnerable to personnel in the event of a drone attack.
“There should be visors, arched structures, concrete floors. We don't see all of this. The depth of the floor in the dugout is insufficient against heavy artillery or bombs. There is no anti-explosive barrier, that is, concrete slabs or sandbags. There is no additional floor in front of the dugouts, or more precisely above the dugouts. … And at the entrances to the dugouts there should definitely be a mandatory 90-degree turn to limit the movement of UAVs. We don't see this either,” Zheleznyak listed the shortcomings.
The deputy recalled that martial law allows for such purchases to be made without transparent tenders, so it is simply impossible to check whether Enki Construction LLC really offered the best conditions during the competition.
However, it is important to note that after the contracts were signed, the cost of the work was increased several times. As a result, the final amount increased by 70 million hryvnias. At the same time, the contractor “Enki Construction” purchased materials not directly, but through its intermediary company – “Premum Active”.
In particular, Premium Active supplied Enki Construction with barrier pyramids for 2,161 hryvnias per piece, although a year later it purchased the same pyramids for only 541 hryvnias.
“In such a simple way, Poltava OVA could overpay 22 million hryvnias more for the pyramids alone. Another 21 million hryvnias are written off for the delivery of these pyramids, although the driver of the transport company did not make such a trip at all, and they do not remember it. Another example is lumber and boards. Here the scheme is the same,” Zheleznyak pointed out and added that the prices were similarly inflated for concrete, reinforcement, sand, and almost all other materials.
“And this is only part of the deal. The largest scheme was fictitious services,” the deputy summarized.
According to him, there are recordings of conversations in which the head of the laying company “Primum Aktiv” together with the deputy director of the Construction Department of the Poltava OVA are looking for ways to create fictitious contracts in order to avoid paying VAT. The amount involved was 40 million hryvnias.
“That is, the Poltava OVA ordered at least 200 million hryvnias worth of fictitious goods and services. You won't believe it, the same “Enki Construction” comes to the aid of the Poltava OVA officials and the laying company, which is building the fortification. … In the “dry” remainder, according to our calculations, at least 200 million hryvnias settled in the pockets of officials and contractors,” the deputy said.
Despite the poor-quality construction, Zheleznyak noted, the participating companies were not blacklisted, and Primum Aktiv even won a new state contract for road repairs in the Poltava region for 1 billion hryvnias.
“At that time, the Poltava OVA was headed by Philip Pronin. He is a classmate of the Vice Prime Minister for Reconstruction Oleksiy Kuleba. Today, Pronin already heads another state institution – the State Financial Monitoring Service. This is one of the most influential financial bodies,” he emphasized.
The deputy emphasized that from the recording of the conversation recorded by law enforcement officers, Pronin's subordinate – the first deputy director of the Poltava OVA Construction Department, Vitaliy Kulinych – was well-versed in the scheme and participated in “solving problems.” As for Pronin himself, he even publicly denied the accusations of overpaying for this timber.
At the same time, Pronin's deputy in the Poltava OVA at that time was Bohdan Korolchuk, who, together with his boss, moved to work at the State Financial Monitoring Service.
“According to our sources, it was Korolchuk who actively communicated with the founder of Enki Construction, which won this sketchy contract for the imitation of the construction of fortifications. That is, the leadership of the Poltava OVA knew exactly what was happening in the procurement for the fortification. And the law enforcement officers who recorded all this also knew exactly about it,” Zheleznyak emphasized.
He added that despite all the punishment for such negligence, no one suffered, moreover, the organizers of the scheme were promoted, and the participants in the history of fortifications continue to organize new schemes.
