Acting Head of ARMA: I Respect the Decisions of the Competition Commission

Yaroslava Maksymenko, who is currently serving as the Acting Head of the National Agency for the Detection, Investigation, and Management of Assets Obtained from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA), has publicly expressed her respect for the decisions made by the competition commission. This commission confirmed the results of cognitive skills testing on March 25, revealing that among the 13 candidates who participated in the testing, only one individual surpassed the established threshold of 107 points. This candidate is Viktor Dubovik, the Director General of the Legal Policy Directorate at the Office of the President of Ukraine.

In a brief interview with Interfax-Ukraine, Maksymenko stated, 'I have great respect for the decisions of the competition commission. Conducting a competition is a necessary process for the development and strengthening of the agency. Moreover, the appointment of the head of ARMA is a crucial condition for implementing the EU's Ukraine Facility support program.'

When questioned about potential pressure in her role, Maksymenko replied, 'When you are temporarily fulfilling duties, it can be a restraining factor for institutional or subjectivity, but on the other hand, it can also serve as a motivating factor for subjectivity.' She also noted, 'Of course, there are informational attacks. They intensified when the competition began. However, there is nothing at the core of these informational attacks—I am not a subject of any criminal proceedings, nor am I involved in any corruption scandals.'

Regarding the informational attacks directed at ARMA, the acting head of the agency emphasized that she views them as inevitable. 'When there is control over resources, this is an unavoidable process. The only thing I prefer is to respond within the legal framework. Effective communication is essential so that these attacks do not create a distorted information landscape, and that our society has objective, reliable information about the processes currently taking place within the agency. I am personally open to dialogue, and all decisions made within the agency, as well as all processes undertaken, are completely transparent. We provide all necessary and interesting information to the public,' Maksymenko stated.

It is worth noting that Viktor Dubovik became the sole candidate for the position of head of ARMA after the competition commission approved the results of cognitive skills testing during its meeting on March 25. According to the results, among the 13 candidates who appeared for the testing, he was the only one to surpass the passing score, achieving 135 points.

During the commission's meeting on April 1, the complaints of two candidates—Volodymyr Murzha and Dmytro Nikitin—regarding the testing process were rejected. The applicants argued that the ongoing air raid alert in Kyiv during the test on March 24 hindered their concentration and prevented them from completing the tasks effectively.

As per the testing results, Dubovik scored 135 points, Maksymenko scored 104, Nikitin scored 103, Murzha scored 102, while the other candidates scored below 100 points. The passing score was set at 107 points.

Since the appeals were rejected, only one candidate who successfully surpassed the passing threshold will proceed to the next stages of the competition. This candidate will be required to complete a practical task and participate in an interview. Concurrently, an integrity analysis of the candidate is ongoing.

In total, the Competition Commission for selecting the head of ARMA received 20 applications for participation in the competition.