Conflict over audit of State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine": former director and officials lobby to block the inspection

New course and the threat of an inspection

While hostilities continue in the east of the country, a sharp conflict has erupted around one of the largest state enterprises in the rear. This concerns the State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine", which is at the stage of being converted into a joint-stock company. It is this process that has become the pretext for a fierce struggle for control over resources.

In July 2026, Ihor Zubovych was appointed head of the enterprise, replacing Yuriy Boholovets in the position. In accordance with the decision of the Supervisory Board, Zubovych will manage the State Enterprise until a competition for a permanent head is held. The key task for the new acting director became conducting an independent audit of the enterprise's activities for 2026. In fact, this means a financial and legal assessment of the work of the previous management.

The prospect of an inspection causes alarm among former managers, given the scale of the structure. "Forests of Ukraine" is the largest state forestry operator in Ukraine, whose net profit in 2025 was 6.9 billion hryvnias. The history of the enterprise, established in 2023, has been repeatedly accompanied by corruption scandals and investigations, making the audit particularly undesirable for previous heads.

Coalition against the audit

Against the backdrop of the threat of an inspection, a powerful coalition has formed that is actively opposing the conduct of the audit. Its core consists of the former director of the State Enterprise, Yuriy Boholovets, who headed the enterprise from its inception, and the head of the State Forestry Resources Agency, Viktor Smal. Smal, whose career began with the position of assistant to deputy Volynets, has not reacted to numerous scandals around "Forests of Ukraine" for years.

To protect their interests, Boholovets and Smal are involving all available connections. In particular, they are trying to win over regional foresters who have held their positions for years regardless of changes in power. Lviv manager Anatoliy Daineka joined this group of influential figures. He personally conducted negotiations with deputies of the Lviv Regional Council so that they would vote for an appeal intended to prohibit the advisor of the new head of the State Enterprise from accessing the enterprise's work.

Involvement of "heavy artillery" and the role of the NGO

The scale of financial interests in this conflict situation has led to the involvement of so-called "heavy artillery". The public organisation "Stop Corruption", which is linked to Roman Bochkala and Bohdan Khmelnytskyi, has unexpectedly become active in the information space. Their attention to the situation at "Forests of Ukraine" indicates the coalition's readiness to spend significant funds to oppose the audit.

The author notes that the activities of this NGO are an example of commissioned (and very well-paid) discreditation of various structures and individuals. It is easy to find many testimonies online about how exactly "Stop Corruption" fights for penthouses, i.e. against corruption. At the same time, the leaders of the NGO themselves demonstrate a high standard of living: their car park includes two "Gelandewagen 63"s, two electric "Gelandewagen"s, two minibuses — a "Lexus" and a "Range Rover". They live in penthouses in Pechersk (in the "Boulevard of Fountains" residential complex), have real estate in the United Kingdom, and travel exclusively in business class.

Lobbying for appointment and hiding the problem

The main goal of the coalition is to lobby for the appointment of Viktor Smal to the position of permanent head of the State Enterprise "Forests of Ukraine". As noted, show must go on. And while the war continues in the east, no one will notice the war in "Forests of Ukraine".