Impunity of Tyshchenko and other people’s elected officials: what threatens the crisis of public trust

As you know, last week Mykola Tyshchenko’s bodyguards in camouflage clothes and balaclavas attacked a former volunteer, a fighter of the Kraken special unit Dmytro Pavlov in Dnipro, which caused a wide public outcry.
How politicians comment on this incident, whether there will be consequences for Tyshchenko, what threatens the crisis of public trust, IA “FACT” analyzed.
The head of the President’s Office, Andriy Yermak, said that he does not maintain relations with his best man and People’s Deputy Mykola Tyschenko, does not accept and does not understand his actions. He wrote in his Telegram channel:
“There is nothing to even talk about here. The behavior of the people’s deputy is absolutely disgraceful. He has no excuses. Law enforcement agencies definitely have something to react to.
If someone has forgotten that everyone should be responsible for their inappropriate actions, regardless of positions or surnames, I advise you to remember this. This behavior of Tyshchenko is incompatible with the status of a people’s deputy.”
People’s deputy, lawyer Oleksandr Kachura believes that Tyshchenko is a non-factional deputy, he was previously expelled from the faction of the “Servant of the People” party, therefore the drafting of the mandate is “a matter for him and his voters.” Kachura said that Tyshchenko can make this decision on his own only within the framework of current legislation.
People’s deputy Maria Ionova stated on the Espresso channel that the Mykola Tyshchenko factor discredits not only President Volodymyr Zelenskyi’s team, but also the entire parliament.
“We know how much the authorities did everything possible to destroy the subjectivity of institutions, legislative institutions. It is a pity that some people’s deputies do it with their own hands. Because they cannot impersonate any law enforcement agencies, arrange illegal things, especially when it concerns the military.” she said.
The People’s Deputy assured that Tyshchenko will bear legal responsibility, but this will happen only at the next elections.
“We have to be very careful and correspond to the behavior of the parliamentarian of a country that wants to become a member of the EU. Therefore, it is the task of Zelenskyi and his team to ensure that Tyshchenko behaves accordingly. In general, we pay a lot of attention to Tyshchenko. He did not stand out in the parliament, except for the scandal. It is a shame that society will later associate the tenure of the Verkhovna Rada with Tyschenko, Bezugla and OPZZH”. – said Ionova.
Regarding the scandalous events related to Mykola Tyschenko, former Minister of Internal Affairs and ex-Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko also commented on his Facebook page:
“I well remember how, during the fierce battles for Bakhmut, the fighters, standing in trenches waist-deep in water, in the breaks between the attacks of the Wagnerites, said that Kolya Tyshchenko got the most of them. To my dumb question – they explained: why do we have to take out our 200 and 300, collecting bloody guts in this mud, and he, bitch – in Thailand?!
Servants do not get tired of breeding scams – from mega bribes to trafficking in humanitarian aid, from driving under the influence of drugs to trafficking in documents for leaving the country. But Kolya Kotleta remains a symbol of lawlessness and injustice in the country of Zelenskyi and Yermak. Especially – among the military.
If the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Criminal Investigation Department do not quickly and publicly punish Tyshchenko and his aunt for encroaching on the freedom, honor and dignity of a person (Chapter 3 of the Criminal Code) and the appropriation of power (Article 353 of the Criminal Code), then sooner or later Kotleta will become a black swan for his patrons.” .
Mykola Tyshchenko is one of the most controversial and scandalous politicians of the new generation in Ukraine. As a restaurateur, he was often the object of controversy and ridicule in social networks. Before his election to the Verkhovna Rada, the most serious charge against Tyshchenko was his alleged membership in criminal gangs. In many mass media and social networks, he is still called “Kolya Obolonsky”.
In his autobiography, the politician does not mention the criminal past, and he himself avoids comments on this topic. Mass media report that Tyshchenko began his criminal career in 1988. He was allegedly engaged in racketeering, illegal trade and tax evasion. In the criminal world, Tyshchenko gained significant authority, but in the mid-90s he left the group due to a conflict with his colleagues. After leaving the gang, Tyshchenko was forced to walk with guards for a long time. He is accused of ties to the Chernovetskyi clan, which, according to many sources, still controls Kyiv. Proof of this is that three of his restaurants – Coin, WLunch and Fahrenheit – are located in the IQ Business Center, which is owned by Stepan Chernovetskyi.
After being elected to the Verkhovna Rada, Tyshchenko did not avoid new scandals. He publicly insulted journalists, fought with colleagues and called the day of remembrance of the victims of the Chernobyl disaster a “holiday”.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Tyshchenko found himself at the center of several high-profile scandals that further worsened his reputation. It is worth noting that his party does not try to justify his actions. In the spring of 2020, Tyshchenko headed the Kyiv headquarters of “Servants of the People” in the fight against COVID-19, which was widely criticized for inefficiency and corruption. In April 2020, information emerged that two of Tyshchenko’s assistants were involved in the fake bombing of the Oleksandriv hospital in Kyiv, where high-ranking officials were being treated for the coronavirus. Tyshchenko was also accused of laundering money for the purchase of medical masks and protective equipment for the Svyatoshyn district of Kyiv.
The loudest scandal in the spring of 2020 was related to the illegal operation of the “Velyur” restaurant in the center of Kyiv, where Tyshchenko hosted many famous guests. He claimed that an anti-crisis headquarters works in his restaurant.
Many deputies assume that Tyshchenko’s sudden transition into politics was connected to his numerous problems with the law.
It should also be mentioned that in January last year, Mykola Tyshchenko got into a loud scandal, when he was seen in the resort of Thailand against the background of heavy fighting in Bakhmut and Soledar.
Although Tyshchenko is now non-partisan, he continues to work in the parliament and is the deputy chairman of the Committee on Transport and Infrastructure. That is, he still holds a leadership position in the parliament, and all the “discrepancies” remained for him without any responsibility.
It should be noted that during the last incident, Mykola Tyshchenko was in Dnipro, as it were, within the scope of activities of the TSK (Temporary Investigative Commission) of the Verkhovna Rada regarding call centers. However, this TSK was created only for one year (until May 30, 2024) and no longer legally exists. And most importantly, Tyshchenko was not included in this TSC.
It is interesting that the scandalous people’s deputies Artem Dmytruk and Oleksandr Kunytskyi were included in the composition of the TSK. A few months ago, there was a similar situation with Kyiv call centers, when also in one of the business centers, where the call center was located, there was a fight with the participation of people’s deputies, a security guard, and a military serviceman. However, it did not end with anything.
It is noteworthy that Tyshchenko is always accompanied by security in camouflage, like a private mini-army. According to the current legislation, a people’s deputy has the right to personal protection in cases where there is a threat to his life or health. This right is regulated by the Law of Ukraine “On State Protection of State Powers of Ukraine and Officials”. According to this law, the personal protection of people’s deputies is provided by the Office of State Security of Ukraine (UDO). However, if a people’s deputy decides to hire private security on his own, this is not prohibited by law. In this case, he can use the services of private security agencies to ensure his security. So, everything suggests that Tyshchenko has something to fear, that’s why he hired bodyguards. Where he gets the money for their salary is a separate topic.
Will Tyshchenko, who was previously unpunished, be punished?
According to the Law of Ukraine “On the Status of People’s Deputy of Ukraine”, there are the following grounds for premature termination of the powers of a People’s Deputy:
- submission of a personal written statement on the conclusion of the deputy’s powers;
- entry into legal force of a guilty verdict against him;
- recognition by the court as incapacitated or missing;
- termination of his citizenship or departure for permanent residence outside Ukraine;
- in case of death;
- incompatibility of the deputy’s mandate with other types of activities.
As you can see, cases of defiant behavior by people’s deputies are not included in the law (on purpose or not). In addition, their actions do not reach the court, because all issues are resolved at the stage of pre-trial investigation by familiar methods.
Therefore, there are currently almost no mechanisms for influencing the behavior of people’s deputies. If we pay attention to the scandals related to people’s deputies (Mykola Tyschenko, Artem Dmytruk, Oleksandr Kunitsky, Maryana Bezugla and others), we will see that almost all of them are majoritarians. And therefore, they cannot be influenced by their colleagues, as in the case of “list people’s deputies”, who can be influenced by a faction or a party.
What can the impunity of those in power lead to
Impunity for the illegal behavior of those in power can have serious consequences for society — such as a decrease in trust in state institutions and a social explosion.
Here are some historical examples:
- The regime of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines. In 1965-1986, Ferdinand Marcos ruled the country under a military dictatorship, massively violating human rights and abusing power. As a result, a popular uprising (the People Power Revolution of 1986) led to the ousting of Marcos.
- Watergate scandal in the USA. In 1972-1974, the administration of President Richard Nixon was involved in illegal wiretapping of political opponents and an attempt to cover up these activities. In addition, the people were dissatisfied with the illegal and unpunished actions of many officials. The result was a decline in trust in government, mass protests, Nixon’s resignation in 1974, and changes in legislation to increase transparency and accountability of government officials.
The word “Watergate” entered the political vocabulary of many languages of the world. This word began to denote scandals that lead to the collapse of a political career. The second root in the name of the hotel “GATE” has become a suffix used to describe scandals that have gained wide publicity in the country or the world, or concern top officials.
- Military coup under the regime of Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe. In the years 1980-2017, Mugabe and his inner circle were regularly accused of corruption, abuse of power, official crimes and repression against the opposition. As a result, the country was engulfed in economic collapse, hyperinflation, mass emigration, political and social instability, which led to a military coup and the removal of Mugabe from power in 2017.
What conclusions should be drawn
We see the impunity of our legislators, who create laws and themselves should be a model of law-abidingness. Ukrainians are once again faced with their defiant, “gentlemanly” behavior, see how their beautiful, patriotic statements diverge in diametrically opposite directions with their actions. Unfortunately, no one is surprised by this anymore, everyone is used to the fact that not everyone is equal before the law, but there are more equal. It also undermines the morale of our military, who are increasingly expressing their displeasure.
Impunity for the illegal behavior of those in power undermines the foundations of democracy and the rule of law, which can lead to catastrophic consequences for society.