Based on the results of local elections 2020, four children of active members of parliament under 21 also became deputies of various local councils, including Dmytro Kopanchuk, who just turned 20 back then.
Like his mother, member of parliament Olena Kopanchuk, Dmytro ran on the «Servant of People»’s ticket and managed to become a city council deputy in Rudky, a town in Lviv oblast with a population of a little more than 5000 people. It’s interesting that not a single local constituents voted for Dmytro directly, but he was a number two on the party list. Therefore, when the «Servant of People» crossed a 5% threshold, they managed to bring three deputies into the council, one of them being Dmytro Kopanchuk.
Dmytro Kopanchuk, who was 20 back then, was in charge of several companies and was doing his degree in Lviv Polytechnic University. A year before he received a bachelor’s degree there and enrolled into master’s course in «electric power industry, electrical engineering and electromechanics».
Still, according to the information found by NGL.media, he never used the opportunity to continue his studies in Lviv Polytechnic University.
Dmytro Kopanchuk (photo from Facebook)
Despite the effective prohibition for military aged men to leave the country, Dmytro Kopanchuk went abroad three times. At least twice (on July 24-25 and August 1-18) he left as a volunteer driver through «Shliakh» information system. According to the answer «UkrTransBezpeka» gave in response to NGL.media’s request, it was Khmelnytskyi Regional Military Administration that registered Kopanchuk in «Shliakh» system і His mother, Olena Kopanchuk, was elected a deputy of Verkhovna Rada (the parliament) from single member district No.189 in Khmelnytskyi Region. As of the moment of publication, NGL.media editorial team didn’t receive any answer from Khmelnytskyi Regional Military Administration about the organization that had requested the permit for the MP’s son departure .
Dmytro Kopanchuk didn’t use Shliakh this year. According to information obtained by NGL.media, around midday on January 1 he crossed the Ukrainian-Polish border in Smilnytsia driving a brand new Toyota Land Cruiser Prado 150 і the vehicle manufactured in 2021 that belongs to «Hidrosvit» company he co-owns. The official basis for departure was accompanying his father, Volodymyr Kopanchuk, 46, who has a group 2 disability status і During martial law, military aged men are permitted to cross the border if they accompany their parents with group 1 or 2 disability . He’s an assistant professor of criminal law department, Khmelnytskyi University of Management and Law.
Volodymyr Kopanchuk (photo by Khmelnytskyi University of Management and Law)
A bit more than in a month, on February 7, Volodymyr Kopanchuk returned to Ukraine in the same car і According to the NGL.media’s source at the customs together with Volodymyr Fedorchuk, ex-deputy of Khmelnytskyi regional council and Olena Kopanchuk’s former business partner. Fedorchuk personally confirmed to NGL.media that he had returned to Ukraine together with Kopanchuk-senior. On March 25 Volodymyr Kopanchuk was fined for breaking traffic rules in Ternopil region when he was driving the same Toyota Land Cruiser Prado 150 і confirmed NGL.media’s source in the patrol police .
Nevertheless, Dmytro Kopanchuk himself never came back. It directly contradicts the legal requirement of returning to the country not later than the accompanied person with disability.
His mother, people’s deputy Olena Kopanchuk, refused to talk to NGL.media despite the numerous attempts on our side. His father, Volodymyr Kopanchuk, turned out to be taciturn as well and said goodbye quite early in the conversation: «Why should I tell you how to contact my son? He’s a grown man, why are you calling me?»
For more than seven months Dmytro Kopanchuk never turned up at Rudky city council where he is a deputy from the «Servant of People» party. They only know he’s abroad.
«I know from his words he’s attending his studies. But did I see any confirming documents? If he’s studying, he’s studying», says Ivan Lozynskyi, head of Rudky community.
Svitlana Vynnytska, city council secretary, clarified that the last time the deputy was seen in the city council premises was on December 15 last year. He didn’t come after that.
«I wasn’t in touch with him lately. How he left the country or why – [knowing it] is not in my job description. [Dmytro Kopanchuk’s] number that I have – he’s not responding it. I can’t contact him. It’s not possible to punish him for non-attendance in any way. That’s his political party that can recall him.
In total, deputies of Rudky city council convened 24 times since autumn 2020, but Kopanchuk attended only 10 meetings. The city council could have suspended the deputy’s mandate based on his personal request, but he never sent one.
Olena Kopanchuk in Verkhovna Rada session hall (photo from Facebook)
If a deputy misses more than a half of local council meetings during a year without an admissible excuse, it is a reason to initiate his recall and unseating. A local council can also contact the local organization of the political party from which the deputy was elected and make the corresponding proposal. A local branch of a political party from which the deputy was elected, that is, the «Servant of People”, can also initiate this process. Local constituents can also do it under the people’s initiative.
«Failure to attend more than 50% of the council’s meeting serves as the ground for recall, but it doesn’t become effective automatically. That is, it’s not directly applicable. It can be initiated by a party, constituents or the deputy himself», explains Taras Rud, project manager for the elections and local self-government of «OPORA» NGO in Lviv oblast. Still, according to him, the very process of recall is complicated and can linger.
Four days weren’t enough for the local branch of the «Servant of People» party to answer NGL.media’s questions about their representative in Rudky town council.
Dmytro Kopanchuk, 22 is a director and owner/co-owner of at least ten companies: LLC «EK Rashivka-Psel», LLC «Mining company Podilsk quarries», LLC «Iguasu», LLC «Era glemping», LLC «Obzor», LLC «Zelenyi eko-svit», LLC «Hidrosvit», LLC «Kerujucha enerhetychna kompaniia», LLC «Rudkivska enerhetychna kompaniia», JSC «Kopanchuk and partners». Financial reports for 2022 are available only for two companies – LLC «Obzor» (income 593,200 hryvnias, net profit 8,000 hryvnias) and LLC «Hidrosvit» (income 1,363,700 hryvnias, net loss 1,096,600 hryvnias).
P. S. On August 9th, Dmytro Kopanchuk sent a written statement to the Rudky town council requesting to be relieved of his parliamentary powers. On September 7 deputies unanimously expelled him from the city council.