Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has ordered that all staff decisions made at Ukrainian customs offices before May 1, 2016 are to be analyzed.

The press service of the Ukrainian government reported on Tuesday that on May 10 at a meeting of Groysman with Head of Zakarpattia Regional State Administration Hennadiy Moskal and Head of the State Fiscal Service Roman Nasirov the prime minister said that all staff decisions at customs offices made before May 1 are to be analyzed, especially those made in the last days of April.

Nasirov, in turn, said that on May 7 four officials were dismissed at the Krakovets-Korczowa checkpoint. They were suspected of participating in smuggling schemes.

Groysman promised to Moskal that he will support him in appointment of new staff at the Zakarpattia region customs office if the office shows good results in a month.

The prime minister said that punishment for abuse of office at the customs offices will be severe.

On May 6, 2016, Moskal asked Groysman to submit a proposal on Moskal's resignation to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The governor said that he took this decision in connection with the replacement of the chief of the Zakarpattia region customs office, which was done without consulting with him. In Moskal's opinion, this was done in the interest of "the cigarette mafia" engaged in smuggling tobacco products to the EU, which he is currently trying to fight.

Nasirov, not waiting for the results of the investigation, dismissed Head of the Zakarpattia region customs office Volodymyr Kolesnikov and appointed advising assistant of MP Valeriy Patskan Andriy Krymsky deputy head of the regional customs office. Moskal said that he has already been appointed acting head of the Zakarpattia region customs office.

The State Fiscal Service denied Moskal's statement that Kolesnikov was dismissed from the post.