Key officials advise Zelenskyy to dismiss Yermak – media

Zelenskyy advised to dismiss Yermak after NABU probe – UP

Officials close to President Zelenskyy are advising the head of state to dismiss the head of the Presidential Administration, Andriy Yermak, following an investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) into corruption in the energy sector.

According to Censor.NET, this was reported by the publication UP.

According to journalists, over the past week, Zelenskyy has held meetings with key figures from the ruling team to find a solution that could stabilise the situation after the publication of the NABU investigation.

In particular, these include meetings with Prime Minister Svyrydenko, Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, and Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate Kyrylo Budanov.

"According to people familiar with the course of the conversations at those meetings, whom UP spoke to, most of those questioned by the president offered different recommendations on how to get out of the crisis, but almost all of them, independently of each other, advised replacing the head of the President’s Office, Andriy Yermak," the article says.

A source from Servant of the People said that it would be easier to count the people in the Rada who did not call for Yermak's resignation:

"Clearly, there is no direct blackmail, but if this doesn’t happen, the faction will simply fall apart."

Within Servant of the People, a kind of "coalition of the determined" has formed, which is even threatening to leave the faction if Yermak is not dismissed.

According to the outlet, the initiative comes from the orbit of the Arakhamia–Hetmantsev tandem, in alliance with the liberal wing of Servant of the People.

Background

MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak said that the head of the President's Office, Andriy Yermak, appears in the "Mindich tapes" released by NABU.

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 NNEGC "Energoatom" in connection with a corruption case.
The NABU is also conducting searches at the home of former Energy Minister Halushchenko and at "Energoatom".
The NABU and the SAPO announced a large-scale operation to expose corruption in the energy sector.
Current Minister of Energy Svitlana Hrynchuk appears on recordings obtained by NABU as part of its investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
Later, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau uncovered an office in central Kyiv belonging to the family of former MP and current Russian senator Andrii Derkach, where a "black ledger" was kept, cash was tracked, and money-laundering operations were organized.
On 11 November, NABU released recordings featuring Minister Halushchenko and Mindich.
Chernyshova has been served with a notice of suspicion of illicit enrichment under Operation "Midas."
One of the suspects, Dmytro Basov, was remanded in custody with bail set at UAH 40 million.
Halushchenko's former adviser Myroniuk was remanded in custody with bail set at UAH 126 million.
The Cabinet of Ministers has submitted proposals to the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to impose personal sanctions against Tymur Mindich and Oleksandr Tsukerman following an NABU investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
Earlier, Ihor Myroniuk and Energoatom’s executive director for security, Dmytro Basov, featured on the NABU tapes under the alias "Tenor", were remanded in custody for 60 days.
Another suspect, Lesia Ustymenko, was also placed in pre-trial detention for 60 days.
The High Anti-Corruption Court has ruled on a preventive measure for Ihor Fursenko, a suspect in an energy-sector corruption case (known on the NABU tapes as "Roshyk").
On 13 November, the High Anti-Corruption Court arrested Liudmyla Zorina, with bail set at 12 million hryvnia.
Zelenskyy imposed sanctions against Mindich and Tsukerman.