The charity fund “Okhmatdet – Healthy Childhood”, which collected money for the restoration of the National Children’s Specialized Hospital (NCHS) after its destruction by a missile attack on July 8, is not going to transfer it to the accounts of “Okhmatdet”, said the director of NCHS Volodymyr Zhovnir.
“Since morning we have learned that BO “Charitable Foundation ‘Okhmatdet – Healthy Childhood’, does not plan to transfer funds to the account of VATB ‘Okhmatdet’. That is, as of August 16, 2024 UAH 378 million remain in the account of the BO “Charitable Foundation ‘Okhmatdet – healthy childhood’,” he wrote on Facebook on Friday.
According to Zhovnir, to raise funds, the details of the fund were made public on the pages in social networks of the hospital and its employees, in the media, as well as on the websites and pages of public authorities, public organizations and just concerned citizens.
“The fact that the fund contains in its name the name of Okhmatdet NDSB became for the benefactors an additional confirmation that the collected money will be used for the intended purpose and in no case will go for purposes unrelated to the recovery process”, – emphasized Zhovnir.
He also noted that no one had any doubts about the honesty of the fund, as they had always interacted normally with the hospital in the past. However, he argued, starting with the first public scandals and requests to transfer money, communication with the organization began to deteriorate.
“We are deeply shocked by the foundation’s decision. The hospital’s name is synonymous with responsibility, professionalism and hope. In my opinion, neither VATB nor the foundation, which bears the name “Okhmatdet”, has the right to let down Ukrainian society. However, the participants of the foundation (among whom there is not a single NDSB employee!) decided otherwise,” he said.
Zhovnir demands from the charity organization to transfer the money collected for the restoration of “Okhmatdet” to the hospital’s accounts and says that they are currently considering the possibility of breaking legal relations with the foundation because of the fact that their actions are “dishonest, as well as probably fraudulent”.
Meanwhile, an official statement from the BF says all funds raised for the hospital’s rehabilitation will remain in its accounts.
“The key thing is that all funds collected for the restoration of Okhmatdet after July 8th remain on the account of the Okhmatdet – Healthy Childhood Foundation. The fund is ready to pay for any urgent need of the hospital: medical equipment or restoration of buildings damaged as a result of the Russian attack. But we have not received a single letter from the Okhmatdet hospital about any such targeted need,” the website reported on Friday.
Representatives of the fund are also asking for legal grounds for transferring funds to treasury accounts without assignment.
“The Ministry of Health in its demands refers to Article 5 of the law “On Charity and Charitable Organizations.” However, this article of the law does not provide a legal mechanism for transferring funds collected by a benefactor to any state or other accounts without grounds. If we fulfill the requirement of the Ministry of Health to transfer the funds, we will grossly violate the law,” the statement says.
To confirm its transparency, the foundation invites the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, to become a member of its nabsoviet board to oversee and control the implementation of the reconstruction of the Okhmatdet hospital after the Russian terrorist missile attack.
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