Carve-up against the CT scanner: why Vinnytsia Regional Council Chairman Sokolovyi fired the director of the Center for Infectious Diseases

  In Vinnytsia region, Ihor Matkovsky, the longtime director of the Clinical Center for Infectious Diseases, was scandalously dismissed from his post. The decision was made at the end of September by Vyacheslav Sokolovyi, the head of the Vinnytsia Regional Council from Groysman's Ukrainian Strategy, who took advantage of martial law. This dictatorial arbitrariness of the head of the regional council outraged the staff of the institution, many deputies and residents of the region. People are convinced that someone has their eye on the center's land. The director of the medical institution himself hinted at this in an exclusive commentary to UNN.

Confiscated property of Russians, bought a tomograph

The medical institution was established over 20 years ago as a 25-bed AIDS Center. For 17 years, it has been headed by Ihor Matkovsky. The number of beds for patients now exceeds 300. And during the coronavirus pandemic, the institution was transformed into the Clinical Center for Infectious Diseases.

On September 22, Matkovsky's next three-year contract was about to expire. Usually, its renewal is a formal procedure if there are no significant claims against the head. This time, they were unexpectedly found. The director was accused of selling the fuel and lubricants he had received on the balance sheet, which had been confiscated from the Russian owners. The proceeds were used to purchase a modern tomograph for the Center. Mr. Matkovsky claims that everything was absolutely legal.

On September 27, I was arranged a meeting with the head of the regional council, and for the first time he announced that there were problematic issues with my last year's financial work. What is meant is that somewhere in the middle of last summer, the relevant services confiscated Russian property in the form of oil. Not fuel, but oil used to make various lubricants. This is an important clarification, because at the session of the regional council it was later said that it was possible to refuel tanks, cars, etc., and we allegedly sold it. No, we didn't. This oil was confiscated, and all the relevant authorities controlled it. The next thing is that in accordance with the current legislation, this oil was sold. All legal and financial rules were met. Out of the 10 million we received, 8.5 million was paid for the tomograph, and 1.7 million was paid to the state in taxes. The tomograph itself cost 18 million hryvnias. We paid the rest of the money for it from the money we earned at the expense of the NHSU 

He added that last fall a large-scale audit was conducted in the region, which included the Center. No violations were found, including this fact. Moreover, after the director was dismissed, this story was audited again.

"As far as I know, there were requests for the Center to provide some documents from the relevant authorities, I think the National Police provided documents and that's it. There were no results. But I think that if there were any problems, there would already be a lawsuit and a criminal case", Matkovsky said.

Land issue is more important than people's health

One can only guess why Sokolov doesn't like the fact that the residents of Vinnytsia region, who elected him as a deputy, will be able to have a high-quality examination on a modern tomograph. The center's employees do not understand this either, and on September 25 they even went out to protest in front of the regional council.

As Matkovsky recalls, he wanted to make a report at the session of the regional council, prepared a presentation on the work done, but he was not allowed to the rostrum.

I am very surprised by one situation: we have a neighboring Odesa region. For some reason, due to martial law, the military administration appoints directors of municipal enterprises and institutions there. And in our region, the head of the regional council appoints them arbitrarily and solely. Of course, this is a violation of all the rules, because even despite martial law, there should have been a submission from the Department of Health, then the Health Commission of the regional council, and then a decision at the session. All this did not happen - just a sole decision of the head 

Last week, according to Matkovsky and some deputies, there was a semi-secret meeting of the regional council's health care commission. At the meeting, the chairman of the commission, Ihor Grubelyas, representing Groysman's Ukrainian Strategy , read out a letter from a civic organization stating that the head of the Center allegedly violated its charter, and that the medical institution itself allegedly carried out activities that were not typical for it. 

The very next day, Sokolovyi introduced the new director of the Center, Ihor Shynkovych, who had been the head of the Khmilnyk Central Military Clinical Sanatorium since 2012. He was appointed with the approval of the then-Minister of Defense Dmytro Salamatin, who fled Ukraine during the Revolution of Dignity and is suspected of treason. Ihor Shynkovych has a brother, Andrii Shynkovych, who was an assistant to former MP Oleksandr Hereha in 2005-2006. In 2014, Andriy Shynkovych became a deputy from the BPP "Solidarnist", but, according to local media, he still remained in the orbit of Gerega. Ihor Shinkovych was the head of the Khmilnyk sanatorium before the full-scale invasion. And, as journalists wrote in 2021, this institution with excellent medical prospects resembled a suitcase without a handle. Another point is that in 2012, with the appropriate approval of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, 0.18 hectares were illegally seized from the sanatorium's land, which was provided for economic needs. At the time, law enforcement officers were interested in this fact. But, apparently, the case did not come to a logical conclusion. And this is where we return to the Center's land. When the status of the Center was upgraded, it was given additional space. Today, the medical institution has about 84 hectares of land near Vinnytsia, where all utilities are connected. And Matkovsky himself hints that the land issue could be the reason for his dismissal.

On the one hand, there is interest in the land. You understand that this land is located three kilometers from Vinnytsia, and all centralized communications are connected to it, I have no right to say... I can assume that it is for construction and so on

It is a really unhealthy situation when the head of a medical institution is fired for purchasing a tomograph. It seems that the land issue is more important to Groysman's associate Sokolovyi than the health of the residents of Vinnytsia region.