After eight hours of intense negotiations, on Jan. 10 the commission to select candidates for the head of Ukraine's new Anti-Corruption Bureau completed their draft of the position's vacancy notice. After advertising and recruiting, the selected candidates will be presented to President Petro Poroshenko, who takes the final decision on appointment.

Foreigners will be eligible to apply for the director's position, on the condition that they simultaneously apply for Ukrainian citizenship. By the time of the appointment, the candidate must have Ukrainian citizenship. Ordinary Ukrainian citizens will also be able to apply.

Other essential requirements include a minimum of 10 years of professional experience and a degree in law awarded by either a Ukrainian or foreign institution of higher education.

Commission head Refat Chubarov, who is also the chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars, had to frequently interrupt tense discussions between commission members. Commission secretary, Yevhen Zakharov, chairman of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union, also had to intervene on a number of occasions. 

Commission member Giovanni Kessler, the director of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), was the most active throughout the discussions, arguing that only Ukrainians should be eligible to apply for the role.

"Ukraine is big country. Almost 45 million people live here. I don’t think that there are no suitable candidates in Ukraine," Kessler said.

Often discussions veered away from recruitment into legal arguments, but Kessler held the commission to its primary task, insisting that agreeing the final text of the notice had to be the priority of the second meeting day.

"We have a job to do, which is selection of the candidate. This is the first thing to do. It is not optional. We should end the meeting today with the confirmed text," Kessler urged.

According to the draft, all applicants must send a CV, autobiography and a declaration of assets via regular mail to the President's Administration office within 30 calendar days after the first publication of the vacancy on the President's Administration website.

The candidates selected for review by the President will also have to complete a standard document package, required by the state service law. The documents include medical declarations and declarations that the applicant has no unspent criminal convictions. It will be added as an appendix to the vacancy notice.

The opening meeting of the commission took place on Jan. 9, where Poroshenko expressed his hopes that the commission will soon form a clear recruitment procedure, a list of criteria for candidates and a list of necessary amendments to the anti-corruption law. Poroshenko also expressed his vision that a foreigner could lead the National Anti-Corruption Bureau.