KYIV. June 2 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Association of Drug Producers of Ukraine has said that the selection of a candidate for the post of chairman of the State Service for Medicinal Products and Drugs Control of Ukraine initiated by the Health Ministry of Ukraine was not transparent.
“The Association of Drug Producers of Ukraine has to say that top managers of Health Ministry had a biased approach to the selection of the candidate for the post of chairman of the State Service of Medicinal Products and Drugs Control being formed now,” the association said in a statement.
The association said that after Mykhailo Pasichnyk was dismissed from the post of the head of the State Service for Medicinal Products who headed the service in the past nine months, nongovernmental anticorruption organizations, particularly, the Anticorruption Action Center addressed Health Minister Alexander Kvitashvili in public demanding to hold a public tender to select candidates for the post of the head of the service, which is under the decision of the cabinet is merged with the State Service for Drugs Control.
“Reacting to the calls of the public, Health Ministry announced an open tender to select candidates, but unfortunately, the further process shows that the transparency principles declared by the top managers of the Health Ministry remained declarations in practice,” the association said.
The association said that the association, the European Business Association (EBA) and the American Chamber of Commerce, the total share of the Ukrainian pharmaceutical market is around 80%, presented an initiative to hold a public even on May 26, 2015, and representatives of the professional society, public figures and the health minister were invited to the event. Candidates for the post chairman of the State Service for Medicinal Products and Drugs Control had a chance to present their vision of settling urgent issues in the sector, own concepts of developing the pharmaceutical sector and hold consultations with business and experts.
“Unfortunately, Health Minister Alexander Kvitashvili decided not to join the wide discussion of urgent issues of the sector… The Health Ministry increased the pace of holding interviews with the candidates, paying no more than 10 minutes to each, and the ministry announced as of May 25, 2015 the ministry selected seven candidates and the additional interview for them was scheduled for May 26, 2015, which made impossible the holding of the broad discussion,” the association said.
“The further functioning of the relevant authorized agency is very important for the companies-members of the association and the association plans to apply to the cabinet and prime minister who appoint chairman of the State Service for Medicinal Products and Drugs Control under a proposal of the health minister under Ukrainian law, asking them to attract professional business society to consultations,” the association said.
