On Sunday, July 14, the defender of Azovstal, paramedic Kateryna "Ptashka" Polishchuk appealed to the President of Ukraine with a request to conduct an official investigation into the commander of the 59th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade Bohdan Shevchuk.
She wrote about it on her Instagram.
She stated that Shevchuk gave criminal orders, neglected the lives of soldiers, due to which some of them died, and also eliminated all dissenting commanders. Polishchuk added that Shevchuk was appointed commander due to family ties.
"Since thousands of military personnel still remain to perform combat tasks in the combat zone under the leadership of Shevchuk, I ask you, Mr. Supreme Commander-in-Chief, to pay attention and conduct an official inspection on the facts of criminal orders, deliberate negligence, disregard for the life and health of personnel, actions that led to to the death of a large number of military personnel, including those from high management positions, selfishness, blind careerism, the elimination of all "disagreeing" commanders, the suppression of morale and the humiliation of personnel by complete indifference to the main goal of military personnel and him as a commander in a war with the enemy", she wrote.
Polishchuk said she was leaving the brigade because of Shevchukʼs "inhumane and unprofessional" attitude.
Reaction of the General Staff
On Monday, July 15, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced that the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi will check the situation — up to the 59th brigade named after Yakiv Handziuk will send a working group led by the head of the Military Law and Order Service.