Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has just in time refrained from a suicidal course that was going to turn his own people against him. People were holding back criticism against him to avoid giving the enemy (Russia) an upper hand during the continuing times of war. His critics were suspicious of his centralising tendencies, but they did not articulate them, realising Zelenskyy’s potential in leading the country during wartime. This was the main reason for unqualified support to him despite growing concerns about the concentration of power, the role of his right-hand man, Andriy Yermak, and axing of popular figures seen as potential rivals, the most notable among them being the military chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.
Zelenskyy himself provoked people to go against him, even when Russian troops are pounding the country, by introducing a Bill that sought to take away the independence of Ukraine’s two key anti-corruption bodies – the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP). Ukrainians have erupted in protest in the midst of the full-scale war with Russia. The legislation brought NABU and SAP under the prosecutor general’s control, allowing it to access case files, oversee and even close investigations. Demonstrators were angered with the way these changes were rushed into law. Suspicion is that allies of the President fear investigators may find clear evidence of corruption against them.
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However, good sense seems to have prevailed on the President, who was apparently taken aback by the reaction. He has now approved a draft law that he claims would restore the agencies’ independence. Those challenging him want to see the details first before they are fully convinced.
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For many, this crisis is the culmination of concerns about Zelenskyy’s style of governance and the conduct of some of those around him. The protesters find alarming echoes of some of his predecessors. Though they stopped short of calling him a “dictator” as US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have sought to portray him to be, a new generation has taken to the streets along with their elders for their love of democratic values. Their common refrain is that the existential threat from Russia is certainly greater and more intense than from alleged corruption by the ruling class in Ukraine, but that does not give licence to Zelenskyy to trample upon democratic values.
The two agencies were created in part to protect foreign aid and investment. People are also disturbed by Zelenskyy’s efforts to blacken the anti-corruption agencies with the bogey of “Russian connections.”
The fact that the current US administration has no admiration for Ukraine’s anti-corruption investigators may have emboldened Zelenskyy. But his European partners were not amused by the proposed law and warned him that it would endanger the prospect of Ukraine’s European Union membership.
It is a good sign that finally Zelenskyy decided not to squander the tremendous goodwill he has had among the people and within hours of the street protests, he announced he has reversed the Bill. He said he respects “the opinion of society” and accepts it as “absolutely normal” for people to react when they do not want something or “when they dislike something.” This may help Zelenskyy regain people’s support to some degree.
