“Not a word about the Moscow spirit”: the Ministry of Culture voiced a new version of Ostapenko's release

The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine has published a new version of the reason for the dismissal of Maksym Ostapenko from the post of director general of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve. This time, the institution reported that Ostapenko abused his official powers by opening a coffee shop on the territory of the monastery and carrying out uncoordinated repair work. This was reported by Ukrayinska Pravda.

«We found a certain number of violations by the management regarding the maintenance of property in an improper condition and the use of this property. During this inspection, violations were found. The management of the reserve was informed about them. To which the management replied that we misunderstood, or that they did not consider it a violation,» — said Oleksiy Zhukov, head of the special commission of the Ministry of Culture, who inspected the activities of the «reserve.»

Among the violations mentioned by Zhukov is a cafe located in the 19th century governor’s house. This is an architectural monument of national importance, but the cafe has been operating there for almost 10 years.

«During the inspection, it was found that there were no title documents required by the current legislation for the use of this premises. And the management commented to us that it was a one-time event,» — Zhukov said, adding that despite all the comments, the cafe continued to operate in May. According to the chairman of the commission, in order for the cafe to operate, it is necessary to obtain permission from the relevant department of the Ministry of Culture and approval from the State Property Fund.

Earlier, the head of the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, Mykola Tochytskyi, explained the reason for the dismissal of the director general of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve, Maksym Ostapenko. According to Tochytsky, Ostapenko “did not fight the Moscow spirit in the Lavra.”