Personnel redistribution: who will obtain the Register of Shipping of Ukraine

The Head of the State Service of Maritime and River Transport of Ukraine (Maritime Administration) Vitalii Kindrativ has fired the Head of one of the key state-owned enterprises, which is part of the orbit of the Ministry of Infrastructure.

Since November 9th, Director General of the State Enterprise Classification Society Register of Shipping of Ukraine Oleksandr Karpenko has lost his position.

This enterprise carries out technical supervision of any water transport, issuing permits for the right to operate and repair it.

The Head of the Maritime Administration Kindrativ explained the reason for the dismissal of the manager by the results of an unscheduled internal audit.

“Under the management of Karpenko, the State Enterprise Classification Society Register of Shipping of Ukraine illegally gave the functions of technical inspection of water transport in charge of four private companies, which actually monopolized the market for the provision of the aforementioned services. According to preliminary calculations, the illegal actions of Oleksandr Karpenko led to losses of the state enterprise in the amount of more than UAH 1 million (USD 36.6 thousand). Information on these violations has already been sent to law enforcement agencies,” Kindrativ wrote on his Facebook page.

According to him, Karpenko is preventing the appointment of a new manager in his place.

There are several interesting points in this story. In particular, the cession of rights to inspect small boats to four private companies is officially announced on the Register’s website. Given the fact that the message is active on the main page of the site and today, November 12th, the scheme continues to operate.

As for the unscheduled audit, it should have been carried out in the summer, when Mr. Karpenko and one of his managers “got caught” on a bribe. They were detained on July 10th, in Odesa, while receiving $2,000 for permits for a private enterprise.

However, Kindrativ, who came to the post of Head of the Maritime Administration shortly after this incident, for some reason did not draw organizational conclusions.

As for the new Head of the Register, Oleksandr Riffa, a resident of Odesa, who previously was working as Deputy General Director of the Register, may become one. He, even if he was not in a share, then exactly in the know of the schemes that work at the enterprise.

On the website of the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, Riffa’s declaration appeared as a candidate for the position of Acting Director General of the Register. This very prefix “Acting” makes it possible to take a position without competition.

In Odesa, Riffa is also known as the former Director of the Public utility Gorzelentrest, and in the media he was nicknamed “the main woodcutter of the city” for large-scale tree pruning. Riffa held this position from 2011 to 2014.

As for the Riffa declaration, it also has a lot to look at.

In 2020, as the Deputy Head of the Register, he officially earned UAH 551,767 (USD 20.2 thousand). He received another UAH 36,249 (USD 1.3 thousand) as interest from bank deposits and 185,000 (USD 6.7 thousand) from the sale of a car.

By the way, last year our hero bought himself a BMW motorcycle for UAH 83,000 (USD 3.04 thousand).

The amount of cash that Riffa keeps, as well as the bank account, instill confidence in his secure future.

The official has – UAH 800,000 (USD 29.3 thousand) and USD 30,000 (at today’s exchange rate – UAH 811,200) in cash. And on the account in the bank PUMB (First Ukrainian International Bank) – another UAH 329,000 (USD 12.05 thousand). In general, this is almost equal to the amount of Riffa’s salary for three and a half years.

In general, the Head of the Maritime Administration has something to think about and conduct another unscheduled audit. We believe he can find a lot of interesting things.

By the way, the popular Odesa Telegram channel Chesnok (Garlic) writes that Riffa has a wife. But there is not a word about her in the declaration. Riffa’s wife, according to the channel, is Irina Kovalish, a Deputy of the Odesa Regional Council from Sluga Narodu party (Servant of the People).