In Mykolaiv, there is a proposal to involve the public in the selection of managers for sports facilities

Oleksandr Sienkevych and Valerii Vetrov. Screenshot from a video

The Expert and Public Council of the Executive Committee of Mykolaiv City Council has appealed to the mayor, Oleksandr Sienkevych, proposing the introduction of a more transparent procedure for appointing the head of the Department of Physical Culture and Sport and the directors of children’s and youth sports schools.

The proposal was put forward by Valerii Vetrov, a representative of the Expert and Public Council attached to the Executive Committee of the Mykolaiv City Council, during a staff meeting chaired by the mayor on 15 June, according to NikVesti.

The proposal centres on the need to involve the public in discussing candidates, familiarising themselves with their development programmes for the institutions, their work plans, and the opportunity to ask candidates questions. It is proposed that the results of such discussions should serve as recommendations for the body responsible for making the final appointment decision.

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As Valerii Vetrov noted, the discussions surrounding the «Atlant» and «Olimp» children’s and youth sports schools formed the basis for this initiative.

According to him, after visiting the sports complex in Odesa together with councillors and community activists, the council members concluded that some of the conflicts in the sports sector may be the result of a lack of transparency in management decisions and a distorted perception of the situation.

«To ensure that, in future, the appointment of the head of the sports department and the school directors is carried out transparently, with the opportunity for community representatives to openly discuss the candidates, familiarise themselves with their programmes and areas of focus in the relevant role, and ask questions. The results of the discussions will serve as recommendations for the body making the final decision,» said Valerii Vetrov.

The Expert and Public Council emphasises that such practices of open competitive selection are supported by the relevant committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on education. It also points out that involving the public in this process leads to better-quality and more transparent staffing decisions.

Screenshot of the Public Council’s appeal to the Mayor of Mykolaiv

It should be recalled that in Mykolaiv, a yachtsman was hospitalised after being attacked by dogs on the grounds of the ‘Atlant’ children’s sports school.

Inspections and demarcation of the ‘Atlant’ and ‘Olimp’ school grounds

It should be noted that the city council has been discussing the demarcation of the territories of the «Atlant» and «Olimp» sports schools and the mooring facilities for small vessels for over a year. Part of the territory is planned to be set aside for the mooring of private yachts, whilst the maintenance of the jetties is to be transferred to the municipal enterprise «Timeset». In particular, the city council set up a special working group and a temporary commission to inspect the activities of the sports schools and the mooring facilities. During the inspections, issues were identified regarding the maintenance of hydraulic structures, the transparency of fund-raising, and the compliance of the facilities’ operations with legal requirements.

The city council emphasises that sports schools should focus on training children, whilst commercial activities relating to boat mooring must be separated. At the same time, yachtsmen and some councillors have highlighted the risks this poses to the operation of the sports infrastructure.

The city council has also warned that, due to the unresolved situation, some mooring facilities for small and sports boats may not open this season.

During the session on 28 May, the mayor, Oleksandr Sienkevych, reacted emotionally to the issue being postponed yet again and stated that he was ‘washing his hands’ of the matter due to the constant delays in the process. Some councillors insisted that the issue required further investigation due to potential violations and risks to children’s safety.