"Love Ukraine for money": head of Ukrposhta called those dissatisfied with his salary "goats"

The CEO of JSC “Ukrposhta” Ihor Smilyanskyi called people who criticize the size of his salary “goats”.

The resonant remark was made during the program “Khid Tuzova” on the “Apostrof TV” channel. Ukrainian media reported about it on 18 June 2026.

During the conversation the head of the national postal operator stated that his salary is 836 thousand hryvnias per month before taxes.

When questioned about the level of his income, Ihor Smilyanskyi replied that his critics pay less in taxes and therefore, in his view, bring far less benefit to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The head of “Ukrposhta” explained his position by the amount of taxes paid and suggested using that indicator to assess people’s contribution to supporting the state and the army.

“Those goats who shout about my salary, they pay fewer taxes. They are tens of times less useful to the Armed Forces than I am. I’m saying let’s look directly at taxes. Do you love the country for free? Let’s love Ukraine for money. And let’s see who paid how much in taxes. Then we’ll talk about love.”

Ihor Smilyanskyi’s statement provoked a wave of outrage on social networks. Users pointed out that the ability to pay significant taxes directly depends on income level, and most Ukrainians cannot set their own salaries at hundreds of thousands of hryvnias.

Previously we wrote:

• “You are crazy”, – the head of “Ukrposhta” on Ukrainians who work for the “minimum wage”
• The CEO of “Ukrposhta” apologized over an advertisement featuring the image of a schoolgirl
• A new logo for hundreds of thousands, while people face queues and cold: realities of Mykolaiv’s “Ukrposhta”
• “Ukrposhta” paid 640,000 UAH for a new logo despite losses
• “A heater at one’s own expense and a fee for every sneeze”: how “Ukrposhta” survives by charging residents of frontline villages