Father of 12-year-old Hryhoriy, who died in road traffic accident in Kyiv, is demanding that issue of road deaths be brought before National Security and Defence Council: petition has been submitted to President
The father of 12-year-old Hryhorii Hlushych, who died in a road traffic accident on 5 June in the Solomianskyi district of Kyiv, Oleksii Hlushych, a member of the armed forces, has submitted a petition to the President of Ukraine. He is calling for road safety to be made a priority of state policy and for the issue of road deaths and injuries to be brought before the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine.
This is stated inthe petition published on the President’s website, reports Censor.NET.
Petition submitted to the President
"I, together with my family, the families of those killed in the road traffic accident and concerned citizens, am asking for simple and fair things:
- that drivers who systematically breach the Highway Code should lose their right to drive;
- that violations resulting in loss of life should be met with proportionate, effective and inevitable consequences;
- that speeding should no longer be regarded as a minor offence", the petition states.
Grigory’s father notes that in 2025 alone, 3,249 people died in road traffic accidents in Ukraine, with a further 31,898 injured. On average, nine people die every day on Ukrainian roads.
"Against the backdrop of a full-scale war and a demographic crisis, the loss of life on the roads is not only a personal tragedy for families but also a serious challenge for the state. These are losses of human potential essential for the defence, reconstruction and development of Ukraine. The critical level of road fatalities is a matter of human security and national interest, and therefore requires inter-agency coordination at the highest state level through the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine," the document states.
It is noted that following the tragedy on 5 June 2026, representatives of the Government and the relevant committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine announced plans to introduce changes in the field of road safety, in particular regarding liability for speeding.
At the same time, as the father of the deceased boy emphasises, Ukrainian society expects not just isolated changes to fines, but a systematic state policy that will ensure a real reduction in road deaths. Such a policy should provide for:
- inevitable and equal liability for all who commit serious breaches of the Highway Code;
- effective measures against drivers who systematically breach the Highway Code;
- the introduction of effective mechanisms for the temporary suspension of driving licences for habitual offenders;
- expansion of automatic recording of offences and transparent oversight of its implementation;
- the implementation of the Vision Zero principles and public reporting by the state on the reduction of road deaths and injuries.
Oleksii Hlushych appealed to the President, saying:
- 1. To initiate a discussion at a meeting of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine on the issue of road deaths and injuries as a threat to human safety, demographic sustainability and Ukraine’s national interests.
- 2. Following the consideration of this issue, to initiate the adoption by the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine of a decision setting out priority state measures aimed at safeguarding the lives and health of Ukrainian citizens and significantly reducing road deaths and injuries, with the subsequent implementation of such a decision in accordance with the procedure established by law.
"Ukraine must not lose people every day in preventable road traffic accidents. Saving citizens’ lives must become an unconditional priority of state policy and an integral part of Ukraine’s national security," the petition states.
How to vote?
You can sign the petition via this link.
Fatal road accident in Kyiv on 5 June 2026
- As a reminder, on 5 June in Kyiv, the driver of a Mercedes car drove at high speed into a pedestrian zone near Karavaevy Dachi in the Solomyanskyi district.
- Senior Police Lieutenant Dmytro Bondarchuk, Police Lieutenant Denys Budchenko and 12-year-old Hryhorii Hlushych, whose father is currently serving in the war, were killed at the scene.
- Iryna Lazareva, an employee of a pre-school education centre, was also killed.
- The court remanded the killer driver, Pleshivtsev, in custody; he had driven into an underpass in Kyiv, killing four people.
