"We had huge fluctuations (meaning a drop in the level of complaints from entrepreneurs to the Business Ombudsman Council – ed.) in the first months of the war, when the government made liberalisation decisions, when some fiscal authorities were not working. But as soon as they started working last July – and I think our colleagues from the EBA can confirm this – all the old habits, practices, and Ukrainian pathologies reemerged," says Vashchuk.
He calls everything that is currently happening in taxation a "tax on Ukrainian business".
"We have examples of criminal cases being automatically opened on the basis of a so-called tax notice-decision for a certain amount, and the amount – due to inflation – is already so low that this particular tax decision turns out to be groundless. It is cancelled either because of our efforts or through courts, including the Supreme Court, but this does not close criminal cases, so the wheels are turning, valuation reports are being written, people are being summoned for questioning," Vashchuk complains.
He adds that a lot of energy and effort is spent not on rebuilding or creativity, but on fighting off law enforcers and preserving what one has.
According to Vashchuk, the root of the problem is Article 19 of the Constitution of Ukraine, which Ukrainian administrative law interprets in its own way: "If something is not spelled out to the last detail, and you do something, it becomes a criminal case." "Everyone says carry out reforms, be bold, be brave. Be brave – and criminal proceedings immediately follow," the ombudsman says.
According to Vashchuk, Article 19 of the Constitution, which "actually says that the government should not abuse its rights and strangle everyone", is interpreted – under the influence of Soviet psychology – in such a way that half of the people who were in the government have criminal proceedings.
While Russian missiles are destroying Ukrainian cities, Vashchuk says, it is up to Ukrainians to destroy or change the institutions that "crucify Ukrainian business".
"We need comprehensible rules, clearer rules and, most importantly, a change in psychology. Not just those formal KPIs that you see on the website, that we are all so service-minded and love you so much, but in practice it turns out very differently. We need formal and informal incentives to be the same, and development opportunities to be a priority," the business ombudsman says.
At the same time, he noted that he sees an initiative on the part of the Presidential Office to address this problem seriously.
"This requires both a decision from the top and continued active lobbying and pressure from complaints to us and others from below. I'm glad that people on the top, starting with the president and those who follow Mr Shurma's Facebook, know that I was at a meeting with him and business. This is the initial phase, and we expect it to be more institutionalised over time. We need to shed this approach of law-enforcement and fiscal authorities because they are simply hunting Ukrainian business down," Vashchuk said.
"One may disagree substantially with President Obama about his decisions on Ukraine in particular. But he said one very good thing: 'Stop doing stupid shit.' That is, before you are going to do brilliant things, stop doing stupid shit. So much time and energy is wasted not on surviving the war, but on opposing your own state, stop it," the business ombudsman concluded.