Khmelnytskyi “Elite” Enters Parliament, Putting the Carpathians at Risk

Wind turbines are being constructed in the highlands of the Carpathians, and the legality of these projects raises serious doubts. The business behind this is linked to former Party of Regions member Maksym Yefimov. Previously, turbines were built in Kramatorsk, but the business was later relocated to Zakarpattia. Now, through parliament, Yefimov’s former ally from “Revival of Ukraine,” Antonina Slavytska (ex-OPZZh), is lobbying for legislative initiatives that could allow turbines to be built in the Carpathians without any approvals. Last fall, an attempt to pass such legislation was successfully blocked.

In addition, an unprecedented event occurred in parliament last year: MPs failed to override the president’s veto, and the controversial “Law on Zakarpattia” was sent to the president for signing by Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk. Effectively, the Verkhovna Rada allowed the military administration in Zakarpattia to seize land from private owners. This is precisely where businesses are relocating to escape the war. The provisions of this law create risks for deforestation as well as for corrupt schemes involving the purchase of property at three times its market value using public funds (see the roll-call list of MPs who voted for Bill 9549 in the “Recharging the Country Is in Your Power” tool).

In this way, the ruling party is complicit in the destruction of the Carpathians. Stefanchuk is not the only lobbyist here. It is worth recalling that in Uzhhorod, during an offsite committee session of the Verkhovna Rada on the construction of highland wind turbines, MP Serhiy Mandziy (“Servant of the People”) actively advocated for it. Like the Speaker, Mandziy is a politician from Khmelnytskyi. He has connections with members of the “For the Future” parliamentary group, known for advancing the interests of Ihor Kolomoisky. The oligarch also has interests in the Carpathians, planning a massive resort on Svidovets.

Stefanchuk has admitted that when forming the “Servant of the People” party list, he included several MPs from Khmelnytskyi. He did not name Mandziy, but in Khmelnytskyi, Mandziy is a well-known politician who even ran for mayor. Stefanchuk could not have been unaware of his background when compiling the list, suggesting that Mandziy’s inclusion occurred with Stefanchuk’s tacit consent.

Who is Mandziy?

Serhiy Mandziy, who entered Parliament via the party list, served as an eleventh-hour assistant to MP Serhiy Labazyuk from 2012 to 2014. This is the same Labazyuk who voted for the “dictatorship laws” during the Yanukovych era and currently sits in the “For the Future” faction. Labazyuk is linked to oligarch Ihor Kolomoyskyi’s group and won his seat in a Khmelnytskyi constituency.

“For the Future” didn’t just lobby for the “Ihor Mazepa Law” (the legalization of stolen forests and coastlines). The political project also blocked government attempts to ensure the state wouldn’t have to deposit funds into court accounts during wartime just to sue “asset-grabbers” for the return of state property.

According to Dzerkalo Tyzhnia, when Mandziy ran for mayor of Khmelnytskyi in 2015, he was supported by another current “For the Future” MP—Oleksandr Hereha. At that time, Mandziy was using a different political brand: the “Petro Poroshenko Bloc.” By coincidence, the former “Regionalist” Efimov also joined the ruling party’s faction in Parliament at that time.

Ultimately, Mandziy suffered a crushing defeat in that election to the incumbent mayor, Oleksandr Symchyshyn, and waited for his chance to enter the Verkhovna Rada.

Notably, both Labazyuk and Mandziy previously ran under the political force led by former Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn—the same man who, despite opposition protests, presided over the session to ratify the extension of the hostile state’s Black Sea Fleet presence in Crimea.

Thus, businesses with interests at both regional and national levels utilize various political forces to maintain representation in government: the “People’s Party,” “Petro Poroshenko Bloc,” “Servant of the People,” and “For the Future.”

Remarkably, while Mandziy was running for mayor under the BPP banner, Labazyuk created a new political project—the “Poruch” (Nearby) party. He ran for the Khmelnytskyi City Council on its ticket but chose not to take the mandate, staying in Parliament instead. This is a standard election tactic: placing a Member of Parliament at the top of a list to boost the new project’s rating and bring other candidates into the council on the strength of their name.

Running alongside Labazyuk for the “Poruch” party at that time was Yuriy Zaslavskyi, now a “Servant of the People” MP. He failed to win a seat in the local council back then. Mandziy also founded the NGO “Strong City,” which Zaslavskyi joined.

Photo from the 2015 election campaign. Source: Zhar.INFO

Thus, both Mandziy and Zaslavskyi were connected to Labazyuk. When the “Servant of the People” lists were being drafted in 2019, Stefanchuk—a Khmelnytskyi native himself—could not have been ignorant of this. In 2019, local media outlet Novyny Khmelnytskyi quoted Labazyuk admitting that when Mandziy was in Kyiv for an “interview,” Labazyuk supported his former assistant.

Screenshot from the “Novyny Khmelnychchyny” website.

The article features a quote from Labazyuk regarding his support for Mandziy during the interview process.

Interestingly, Labazyuk—who knows how to plant his associates under different political brands—outmaneuvered the “Servants” after the parliamentary elections. His wife, Violeta Labazyuk, who lacked prior experience, became the head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Council representing “For the Future.” She competed for the position against Oksana Bochkaryova, the head of the regional veterans’ hospital, who coincidentally had been Labazyuk’s rival in his constituency during the parliamentary elections. The Labazyuks operate a namesake foundation in their district, titled to benefit the whole family during elections: the “Labazyuk Family Charitable Foundation ‘My Poruch’.” The name echoes the regional political project, the “Poruch” party.

During the struggle for the Regional Council chairmanship, “For the Future” struck a deal with “Team Symchyshyn.”

In the same region, there is another representative of “For the Future”—Oleksandr Hereha, who maintains his own regional political project, “For Concrete Deeds” (Za Konkretni Spravy). To provide context, this regional project secured 10 seats in the Regional Council after the local elections, outperforming “European Solidarity” and “Batkivshchyna.” Incidentally, “Batkivshchyna” also secured the support of the Herehas in this region.

However, Labazyuk’s former assistant—current “Servant” Mandziy—did not enter Parliament immediately. It only happened after MP Oleksandr Kubrakov resigned his mandate. Ironically, Labazyuk is suspected of offering an improper advantage to Kubrakov and Mustafa Nayyem to ensure a business linked to him received contracts under the “Great Construction” program.

Currently, the High Anti-Corruption Court has barred Yulia Tymoshenko—who was served a notice of suspicion regarding the bribery of MPs—from communicating with, among others… Mandziy.

This is how local politicians unite and exploit vastly different national political brands—from Lytvyn’s “People’s Party” and BPP to “Servant of the People.” Additionally, they create their own regional political projects like “Poruch” and “For Concrete Deeds.” This is done not only to grant business access to local or state budgets but also to craft laws favorable to their private interests.

Even in times of war, lobbyists do not miss an opportunity to influence the work of Parliament. And if a politician like Mandziy made it onto the party list with Stefanchuk’s tacit consent, one should not be surprised that on April 1st—April Fool’s Day—Stefanchuk signed the “Zakarpattia Law” in violation of the Constitution and sent it to the President.

It’s not just the “Kolomoyskyi group” that may have reason to thank him for that.

Specially for Glavkom