The series “The Kolomoisky Case” is just beginning. What's next

Kolomoisky is in jail. If they had said four years ago that this could happen, they would have called it nonsense or propaganda manipulation

Kolomoisky himself, Poroshenko, and many other serious people would laugh at this. Such a situation would be called a joke and unscientific fiction in the style of the series “Servant of the People.” But it happened. And this is another example of the fact that it makes no sense to predict Ukrainian politics several years in advance.

In 2014, the very idea that Vladimir Zelensky could become president of Ukraine would have seemed like a stupid joke. If in 2019 or even in 2021 they said that Zelensky in the Western world would be called the new Churchill, not only Poroshenko would laugh at this. But this also happened.

Ukrainian politics is fundamentally unpredictable for the long and even medium term. Things can change quickly, and not as expected. More or less reliable forecasts can only be made for the coming months. In some situations, a lot can change even in six months.

Of course, a pre-trial detention center is not a court sentence. But it’s interesting that Kolomoisky did not go on bail

The political and legal series “The Kolomoisky Case” is just beginning. And it can last for years. The first high-profile anti-corruption cases are still in the courts, and it is not yet known when and how they will end.

By the way, this also means that it is not enough to toughen the punishment for corruption; we must first of all bring order to the work of law enforcement agencies, and especially to the judicial system.

It is obvious that suspicion of Kolomoisky and his stay in a pre-trial detention center is a demonstrative act. From the point of view of political tactics, this is a demonstration of the fight against corruption, and that there will be no untouchables.

Strategically, this is a warning for the future for many representatives of the political and business elites. And there is no doubt that they will not like such a warning.

In a televised address, Zelensky stressed that there will be “no many years of ‘as always’ in relation to those who robbed Ukraine and put themselves above the law and any rules.”

But it is worth remembering that the law and rules must apply universally, including to those who are part of the government today. And in order for the law to work effectively and steadily, it is necessary to improve the law itself to a certain extent (at least in the procedural dimension), as well as create a judicial system where judges will work for the law, and not for themselves.