July 25 2003, 09:18 APK-Inform

Checks of law-enforcement bodies stripped Ukrainian agriculture of $656.6 million of investments - Kozachenko

According to the President of Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation Leonid Kozachenko, as a result of inspections of power authorities, Ukrainian agriculture has been cut of 3.5 billion hryvnias of investments (5.33 hryvnias = $1).

He said this at a press-conference on July 24.

He said over the recent 4 to 5 months there had been more than 10,000 checks of companies, relating to trade and processing of grain. Many of them were checked several times. Under pressure of power authorities many companies were unable to perform their operations during 2 to 3 months, as their documentation had been extracted, the accounts blocked. Interrogations of managerial staff lasted for several days.

"The checks have resulted in the crisis, which burst out in the food market", Kozachenko believes. He says that "it was total paralysation of the activities of all [business] structures".

The 10,000 checks have resulted in just 11 court verdicts, really adjudging people guilty of crimes.

"I think it is unacceptable when agrarian reform starts to be assessed by law-enforcement bodies. We hope that the President and Prime Minister will take into account our proposals", Kozachenko said.