NABU, SAPO state bill introduced by Zelenskyy restores all their powers and guarantees of independence

The bill introduced on Thursday to the Verkhovna Rada by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) restores all powers and guarantees of independence of these agencies, according to a statement published on the telegram channels of NABU and SAPO simultaneously.

"Bill No. 13533, submitted by the President of Ukraine as an urgent matter, restores all procedural powers and guarantees of independence of the NABU and the SAPO. NABU and the SAPO participated in the preparation of the text and call on the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to adopt the President's initiative as a basis and in its entirety as soon as possible. This will prevent threats to criminal proceedings investigated by the NABU and the SAPO," the statement reads.

As reported, the bill On amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine and certain legislative acts of Ukraine regarding strengthening the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office was submitted by the head of state and received registration number 13533.

As noted in the explanatory note, the bill contains provisions aimed at consolidating the status of the SAPO as an agency that independently carries out procedural management of the investigation of crimes under the jurisdiction of the NABU. The draft law also proposes a mechanism to prevent intelligence and subversive activities of foreign special services against employees of anti-corruption agencies. The draft law introduces new preventive and counterintelligence mechanisms to protect anti-corruption bodies from possible influence of an aggressor state.