The Coordinator of the Corporate Europe Observatory, Olivier Hoedeman, believes that the “bribery scandal” now known as Qatar gate “is a product of years of neglect that continues to haunt the EU’s institutions”.
The coordinator of this institution, which is dedicated to investigating the connections of interest groups in Brussels, describes practices that show “serious negligence on the part of the EU institutions and European politicians […] the past ten years”.
Among Members of the European Parliament, there are those who fear that this could be a more extensive matter “in its seriousness”. For example, MEP Paulo Rangel wonders “what is the motive” behind the case that led to the arrest of MEP from the Greek Socialist Party PASOK, Eva Kaili, after she was discovered at “flagrante delicto” in possession of hundreds of thousands of euros in cash, in a case of suspected corruption related to Qatar.
This case raises questions such as “the funding of NGOs [organizações não-governamentais]”, about which there should be “more transparency”, argues Paulo Rangel, who would still like to see a review of “the issue of free movement for former deputies”, who have access to institutions without any control, while many of them there are now representatives of interest groups.
“There is data showing that there are 485 former MEPs who currently work in interest groups,” said MEP Marisa Matias, adding that with regard to the European Commission, there are also “a number of Commissioners who have moved from one side to the other other”.
“It is conceivable that we would all have access to an overview of who the lobbyists are and who they are meeting with,” emphasizes the coordinator of the Corporate Europe Observatory, who calls for the introduction of “rules that prevent lobbyists from […] to move freely through the corridors of the institutions”.
Olivier Hoedeman accuses the institutions of ignoring calls to create “effective measures against the repressive lobbying regime” for “many years”, while “these proposals have been around for a while but have not been heard”.
The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, has already said she intends to “start a reform process to see who has access to our facilities, how NGOs, how people are funded and what links they have with third countries “.
The Coordinator of the Corporate Europe Observatory regrets that “the energy crisis in recent months may have exacerbated the problem”, as “the European Union and the governments of several Member States have clearly persuaded the Qatari regime to allow increased imports of gas and oil guarantee after the Russian invasion of Ukraine”.
Recently, at the inauguration of the Football World Cup, European Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas traveled to Qatar and the statements made by the Greek politician did not go unnoticed and were even seen as friendly towards the country that has been widely criticized, namely in terms of of human and labor rights.
This case raises questions such as “the funding of NGOs [organizações não-governamentais]”, on which there should be “more transparency”, defends Paulo Rangel.
Von der Leyen guarantees that the Commission services “check the transparency register, in which all meetings of college members and members of their cabinets with representatives of interest groups are published”to ensure that the shock wave does not reach the community manager and to ensure that contacts with Qatar are not suspicious.
The President of the European Commission admits that even the European Commission is in regular contact with Qatar to “resolve global issues, such as climate change, […] regional issues such as peace and stability in Afghanistan and the Middle East, and bilateral issues such as diversification [energética]to move away from Russia and Russian fossil fuels”.
The case of Eva Kaili, who has been in pre-trial detention since December 11, accused of “corruption, money laundering and participation in a criminal organization” with links to Qatar, has prompted the European Parliament to review its codes of conduct.
“We will ask for greater transparency in meetings with external actors and those associated with them,” promised Metsola, as this case has cast doubt on the institution that has been fighting corruption for years.
In a statement, the PCP delegation in Brussels called for “a thorough investigation into the facts and the accountability of those involved”, but also asks Parliament not to “take hasty measures that create further difficulties for existing entities” and to lead to “conceptions imbued with an inquisitorial character”.
“We are outraged by this situation,” said Pedro Marques, from the Socialist Party’s delegation to the European Parliament and a colleague on Eva Kaili’s bench.
“No one will sweep this under the carpet,” says the president of the European Parliament, who promises to “launch an internal investigation to analyze all the facts related to the EP and see how our systems can become even more secure”.
The group of Socialists and Democrats to which the deputy belongs has already said it wants to act as an assistant in the ongoing process, as an injured party, given the consequences for the group’s reputation.
“We are furious about this situation,” said Pedro Marquesof the Socialist Party delegation to the European Parliament and a colleague on Eva Kaili’s bench confessed that he was “personally disgusted by the situation”, which is “a pity”.
“We were already aware of the systematic allegations of corruption in the allocation of the World Cup to Qatar […] and now here too [no Parlamento Europeu]the corruption of one of the most important institutions of European democracy”, he complained and assured that he has “asked, on behalf of the group of colleagues who involved part of their team in investigations, to suspend their functions, which has already happened” .
Eva Kaili and Maria Spyraki “are suspected of fraud affecting the EU budget”, in a public money management case, in connection with the “parliamentary allowance for the remuneration of parliamentary assistants accredited in Strasbourg”.
Last Thursday, the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office asked for Eva Kaili’s parliamentary immunity to be waived so that she can respond in another court case involving another deputy, also Greek, from the group of the largest political family in the European Parliament, the PPE , is involved.
Source: DN
