Vitrenko suggests giving Ukrainians his bonus of $2.9 billion received from Gazprom

Yuriy Vitrenko, Executive Director of Naftogaz of Ukraine, wrote on Facebook that the company did not fulfill the terms of the labor contract and had not yet paid him a bonus. According to him, Naftogaz still had to pay 50% of the amount on December 30, 2019.

“I also note that this delay in payment of wages inflicts significant damage on me, since these funds could be placed on deposit in a bank and I could receive interest on this amount”, he wrote.

He also noted that neither the government nor Naftogaz can review the size of its premium without violating labor laws:

“Voluntarily refuse honestly earned money in favor of the employer – this contradicts the essence of labor relations. It may be considered as coercion on the part of the employer, or, given the traditions of corruption in Ukraine, as attempt to “stay in the chair”, then to use his position for enrichment is already corrupt”.

In mid-January Yuriy Vitrenko offered the political leadership to give the bonus directly to the Ukrainians. He also noted that it would be right “to equally distribute among all Ukrainians not only my bonus, but also all the funds earned primarily due to my contribution”. We are talking about $2.9 billion, as well as $7.2 billion – guaranteed income from a transit contract with Gazprom.

“About UAH 6 thousand per each citizen of Ukraine or more than UAH 16 thousand for every household”, he wrote.

He noted that Ukrainians could use these funds for energy efficiency:

“Such expenses are not always a priority, and so Ukrainian families will have earmarked funds for this. For example, you can give out certificates that Ukrainians can exchange for goods in a special electronic store (you can even do this in the Prozorro system), which will trade exclusively in goods to increase energy efficiency. Such goods may include materials for thermal insulation of premises, new boilers with high efficiency, etc”.

At the end of December, Naftogaz received $2.9 billion from Gazprom by decision of the Stockholm arbitration.

Earlier it was reported that Zelenskyy had proposed spending $2.9 billion received on medicine and infrastructure.