16 years without change: Petitioners link the disruption of the “Odessa Polytechnic” rector election to the Verbytsky case
The same rector has been in office for sixteen years; his contract expires in just two weeks, and there has been no announcement of new elections. An official complaint has been sent to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko regarding the actions of officials at the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, who are artificially blocking the announcement of a competition for the position of rector at Odessa Polytechnic National University.
UA.News learned of this from documents received by the editorial office.
The complainant, one of the university’s faculty members, asserts that the leadership of the Ministry of Education and Science is covering for the current head of the institution, Hennadiy Oborskyi, whose legal term limit has definitively expired, and is also helping to conceal documents related to the case of draft evasion involving former Deputy Prosecutor General Dmytro Verbytskyi.
The main message and the essence of the conflict
Hennadiy Oborskyi’s contract expires on August 31, 2026. According to Part 3 of Article 42 of the Law of Ukraine “On Higher Education,” the Ministry of Education and Science was required to announce a competition to fill the position no later than two months before the end of this term—that is, by June 30. Since this was not done, a legal vacuum has arisen at the institution. This jeopardizes the legitimacy of signing financial documents and issuing diplomas to graduates, as Oborsky is effectively barred from holding the position.
16 Years in Power and the Corrupt “Reset” of His Tenure
According to the archives of the Ministry of Education and Science (specifically Order No. 126-k dated April 12, 2010, signed by Dmytro Tabachnyk, and a letter from Deputy Minister Mykhailo Vynnytskyi dated April 7, 2025 No. 1/6842-25), Hennadiy Oborskyi was first appointed acting rector of Odesa National Polytechnic University on April 12, 2010. In other words, he has been at the helm of the university continuously for 16 years.
In August 2020, pursuant to Cabinet of Ministers Order No. 1041-r, the institution was reorganized through the merger of ONPU and Sevastopol National Technical University into the State Institution “Odesa Polytechnic.” This move was used to ostensibly “reset” Oborsky’s terms of office so that he could be re-elected rector in June 2021 for a “first” term. At the same time, established practice of the Supreme Court of Ukraine clearly stipulates that the reorganization of an institution without changing its functions or leadership roles does not interrupt the actual length of service; therefore, in accordance with Part 2 of Article 42 of the Law of Ukraine “On Higher Education,” Oborsky’s term limit (no more than two consecutive terms) has been fully exhausted.
Double Standards at the Ministry of Education and Science
In response to an inquiry regarding the announcement of the competition, Deputy Minister of Education and Science Mykola Trofimenko noted that the resolution of the issue had been delayed due to the “security situation in Odesa,” power outages, and poor internet connectivity.
However, the applicant emphasizes the obvious falsification of the security arguments: no law enforcement agency or military administration (the Security Service of Ukraine, the National Security and Defense Council, or the Southern Defense Forces) has issued any bans on holding elections in Odesa. Furthermore, during 2025–2026, the Ministry of Education and Science successfully held elections at the V. Dahl East Ukrainian National University, which had been relocated from Luhansk Oblast; in frontline Kharkiv (Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv National Academy of Public Administration), as well as in Sumy Oblast (Sumy State University), where on April 14, 2026, all nine polling stations operated directly in shelters under the threat of shelling.
Link to the “Verbytskyi scheme”
The complaint cites as the real reason for the election sabotage an attempt to conceal from the SBU and the NACP materials concerning former Deputy Prosecutor General Dmytro Verbytskyi (a defendant in NABU proceedings regarding illegal enrichment amounting to 29 million hryvnias). According to UA.NEWS investigators, documents signed by Oborsky were issued stating that Verbytsky was enrolled in a full-time graduate program, which allowed him to obtain a deferment from mobilization at the Khadzhibey Regional Military Registration and Enlistment Office in Odesa. Currently, the university administration is refusing to provide information regarding the former official’s actual enrollment.
Demands to the Government
In a complaint filed with Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, the petitioners request that an official investigation be conducted into the actions of officials at the Ministry of Education and Science, that Deputy Minister Mykola Trofimenko be held disciplinarily accountable, to require the ministry to immediately announce a competition for the position of rector and to bar Hennadiy Oborskyi from participating in the election due to his having reached the maximum permitted term of office.
In effect, the Cabinet of Ministers must determine whether the law truly applies equally to all Ukrainian universities, or whether separate rules apply to “Odesa Polytechnic.”
As a reminder, the National Agency for Corruption Prevention (NAZK) showed no interest in the asset declaration of Gennadiy Oborsky, rector of Odessa Polytechnic University—where Dmytro Verbytskyy is a student—specifically regarding an apartment the rector allegedly purchased for 10 hryvnias, which raised no questions.
