Zelensky meets with Honcharuk, sets number of urgent tasks for government

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky met with Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk and set a number of important tasks for the Government.
The Head of State said he had considered Oleksiy Honcharuk's letter of resignation as Prime Minister, the press service of the Head of State reports.

“I have decided to give you and your government a chance if you resolve some things that are very important today and are of concern to our society. Now is not the right time to destabilize the country economically and politically," the President told Oleksiy Honcharuk.

In particular, the government must present to the Head of State a new concept of salaries of heads of ministries, departments, state-owned enterprises and their deputies, taking into account the situation in the country.

“This should be a normal salary. We understand that these are highly qualified experts, but I want to have a shared opinion with you and the ministers that such salaries may be in Ukraine today in a situation in which our economy is. When you and your government raise the economy, it will be possible to raise the wages,” the President stressed.

Volodymyr Zelensky said that those ministers who would not agree to work for the salary proposed by the government would have to resign.

In addition, the President stressed the importance of strengthening the government through personnel changes.

"I have no reason to think that any of them is dishonest or unprofessional. I remember how you picked this government, how we communicated with you and with them, how we saw their strategy and their team. But we want to strengthen the government. Therefore, I ask you to find weaknesses and to replace the heads of ministries according to their professional data,” the Head of State said.

Volodymyr Zelensky also stated the need to reformat some central executive bodies. In particular, it is a division of functions in a number of ministries.

Volodymyr Zelensky also asked the Prime Minister to establish cooperation with MPs of all factions and with parliamentary committees.

For his part, the Prime Minister of Ukraine thanked the President for his confidence and agreed to the proposed changes, which should be implemented in the near future.

“I am not afraid of the prospect of trying to repay the advance, a credit of trust that you have delegated on behalf of society. It is an important task for me, a great honor. And we are ready to fulfill your tasks,” Oleksiy Honcharuk said.

As a result of the meeting, Oleksiy Honcharuk promised to prepare an interim report on the activities of the Cabinet of Ministers by February 4 and submit it to the parliament. In particular, the concept of a strengthened government, as well as its partial organizational reformatting will be presented to the people’s deputies.