Explanation of MoD on purchase of ammo worth UAH 23 billion without participation of Defense Procurement Agency is outright deception- Shabunin
The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine's official explanation for the need to use UAH 23 billion to purchase weapons without the Defence Procurement Agency is an outright deception.
This was stated by the head of the Anti-Corruption Action Centre Vitalii Shabunin, Censor.NET reports.
"We are talking about the 23 billion hryvnias that the Cabinet of Ministers (on the proposal of Umierov) took from the prepared contracts of the Defence Procurement Agency (DPA) and gave to the border guards. The latter are siphoning off this money (100% in advance), overpaying at least €90 million for the purchase of 152-mm shells (one of the points of the Polish commercial proposal)," Shabunin said.
The activist claims that the terms under which the Ministry of Defence is going to purchase ammunition are less favourable than those of the Defence Procurement Agency.
"The Ministry of Defence could have tried to justify itself by saying that the Poles have better conditions (than the DPA). But this lie is easy to refute. For example, the Poles will receive 100% of the money in advance, while the same nomenclature in the DPA provided for 50% advance payment. Similarly, the delivery times under the finished contracts of the DPA were better," Shabunin emphasises.
Also, according to the AntAC head, the Ministry of Defence deliberately misled journalists by explaining the risk of the DPA not spending the money on ammunition purchases without its participation.
"For two weeks, the Ministry of Defence remained silent on this issue, but under pressure from the media (including international media), they were forced to respond: "At the end of November, there was UAH 102 billion left on the accounts of the DPA. The amount of outstanding budget obligations was UAH 45 billion, while unpaid contracts totaled UAH 57 billion.
First, let me clarify the UAH 45 billion that remained in the accounts of the DPA at the end of November.' On November 25, the accounts held UAH 45 billion, but the very NEXT DAY, it was UAH 23 billion!
Now, regarding the UAH 57 billion in budget obligations that indeed remained in the DPA's accounts at the end of November — this money is not FREE. These funds are allocated to pay for DECEMBER deliveries under ALREADY signed and ongoing contracts," Shabunin explains.
"This money remained with the DPA only because the agency paid suppliers no more than 50% in advance, covering the remainder only AFTER delivery. Unlike the border guards, who pay 100% of the contract value upfront to the strange Poles. Overpaying at least €90 million on one item alone - 152 mm shells," adds the AntAC head.
As reported earlier, on 29 November, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted Resolution No. 1191-r, which allocated UAH 23 billion for the purchase of shells for the State Border Guard Service. The initiator was the Ministry of Defence.
The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine commented on the delegation of authority to purchase defence goods for the needs of the Ukrainian Defence Forces and called for no speculation on this topic and to avoid manipulation.
Later, the Ministry of Defence explained why it had redirected UAH 23 billion to the State Border Guard Service for the purchase of weapons, stating that at the end of November, UAH 102 billion remained on the accounts of the DPA. The amount of outstanding budgetary commitments was UAH 45 billion, and UAH 57 billion was unpaid under the contracts. This created a risk that part of the funds would not be used to meet the needs of the Armed Forces before the end of the budget year.
