Media war against NABU: top Telegram channels simultaneously attack anti-corruption activists
At least eight leading Ukrainian Telegram channels (from the top ten in the Telemetrio service ranking) are conducting a coordinated media campaign to discredit the NABU and SAPO. Over the past nine months, they have published nearly 900 negative posts, which have garnered a total of over 250 million views.
According to Censor.NET, these figures were released by the People with Cardboards movement in a study published by Ukrainska Pravda.
Activists recorded 78 "waves" of criticism — a series of three or more posts with almost identical text, published simultaneously on the same day.
The authors of the study classified about 20 main narratives promoted by these channels. "The main narrative is the link to Russia, " the activists emphasise.
Other topics of criticism include:
- Accusations of inefficiency.
- Calls to dissolve the Bureau.
- Discrediting of civil society activists (in particular, the Anti-Corruption Action Centre).
The most powerful information attacks were recorded in July, during searches and voting on Law 4555. The media also "hyped up" the topics of testimony against NABU from fugitive MP Khristenko, the Magamedrasulov case, and a traffic accident involving a Bureau detective.
According to activists, the attacks intensified again after the NABU and SAP operation "Midas" to expose corruption schemes in the energy sector. Among the latest "waves" of negativity are accusations against Magamedrasulov of alleged ties to former PrivatBank co-owner Boholyubov, claims that oligarch Mindich fled due to the "inefficiency of NABU," and announcements of "NABU tapes."
"The enormous financial and organisational resources involved in the attacks... indicate that these campaigns are not accidental, but a well-planned and coordinated media war," the authors conclude.
They emphasise that destroying the reputation of anti-corruption institutions is beneficial to two forces at once: the corrupt Ukrainian elites and the enemy (Russia), whose interests in this situation dangerously coincide.
Mindichgate
- Earlier, Censor.NET reported that NABU was conducting searches at Mindich's residence, who left Ukraine a few hours before the searches.
- As reported, on Tuesday, 4 November, searches were conducted in one of the branches of the separate divisions of NAEK Energoatom in connection with a corruption case.
- NABU is also conducting searches at the home of former Energy Minister Galushchenko and at Energoatom.
- NABU and SAPO announced a large-scale operation to expose corruption in the energy sector.
- The current Minister of Energy, Svitlana Hrynychuk, appears in NABU recordings as part of the investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
- Subsequently, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau exposed an office in central Kyiv belonging to the family of former MP and current Russian Senator Andrii Derkach. There, they kept "black accounts," recorded money, and organised money laundering.
- On 11 November, NABU released recordings featuring Minister Halushchenko and Mindich.
- Chernyshov has been notified of suspicion of illegal enrichment as part of Operation Midas.
- One of the suspects, Dmytro Basov, was remanded in custody with bail set at 40 million hryvnia.
- Halushchenko's former adviser, Myroniuk, was remanded in custody with bail set at UAH 126 million.
- The Cabinet of Ministers submitted proposals to the National Security and Defence Council to impose personal sanctions on Timur Mindich and Oleksandr Tsukerman following a NABU investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
- Earlier, Ihor Myroniuk and the executive director of security at Energoatom, Dmytro Basov, who appeared in NABU's videos under the nickname Tenor, were remanded in custody for 60 days.
- Another suspect, Lesia Ustymenko, was also remanded in custody for 60 days.
- The High Anti-Corruption Court chose a preventive measure for Ihor Fursenko (known as Ryoshik in NABU recordings), a suspect in a case of corruption in the energy sector.
- On 13 November, the High Anti-Corruption Court arrested Lyudmila Zorina, with bail set at 12 million hryvnia.
- Zelenskyy imposed sanctions against Mindich and Zuckerman.
