Nobody is harsher on the corrupt in this world than the European Parliament. The fact that the Gulf state of Qatar is said to have tried to buy influence here of all places is a disaster for the EU.
Eva Kaili was a rising star in Greek politics. The 44-year-old is now in custody on serious corruption charges.
The word “Qatar Gate” has been making the rounds in Brussels and Strasbourg since the weekend. Based on the Watergate scandal of the 1970s, this alludes to the serious crisis of confidence that hit politicians at the time after the revelations. Have the people’s representatives of the European Union also lost their credibility?
There are still many open questions in this case. The presumption of innocence still counts for Eva Kaili, the now suspended Vice President of the European Parliament, and the four other suspects. However, all the facts known so far speak for themselves: five arrests, sixteen house searches, several sealed offices and “sacks full of banknotes” found in Kaili’s apartment.
The Greek, according to Belgian newspapers, was probably part of a network that worked less for the interests of EU taxpayers than for those of the Gulf state of Qatar. The police confiscated a total of 600,000 euros.
“Ethical carelessness”
Kaili’s party, the socialist Pasok, frantically pulled the plug on Friday and excluded the 44-year-old. The former newsreader was also thrown out of her group in the European Parliament. A steep career ends abruptly in a Belgian prison cell.
Normality is unthinkable even in the tranquil EU political scene. MPs are puzzled as to whether the investigations will spread further. Who else could the Emirate have charmed with money and gifts? Do other authoritarian states that want to polish up their reputations see a chance? Can European politics be bought?
As a reminder, cases of corruption and abuse of power are not new in the Union. With the resignation of the former French EU Commissioner Edith Cresson, who is said to have forged documents and embezzled funds, an entire commission collapsed in the 1990s. The result was stricter transparency rules and the establishment of an anti-corruption agency.
There is no shortage of rules in the European Parliament either. One states that MPs are required to report every meeting with lobbyists and that lobbyists must disclose on whose behalf or in their interests they are working. However, the constitutional lawyer Alberto Alemanno complains that the rules are far too permeable and in Parliament an almost “ethical carelessness” prevailed.
However, this mentality is in stark contrast to the high moral standards that the House of Representatives otherwise sets when it comes to misconduct in politics. In fact, no one else in Europe is as harsh on the corrupt and semi-authoritarians, the Orbans and Kaczynskis of this world, as the only elected representatives of the EU.
Difficult showdown with Hungary
For years they have campaigned to ensure that the separation of powers works and that European funds do not disappear into dark channels; They proudly launched the so-called rule of law mechanism during the pandemic. If Orban doesn’t clean up the favoritism in his own country, according to the principle, Brussels threatens to withhold the billions in aid. Hungary and the EU are currently heading for a showdown on this very issue.
It is obvious that Hungary’s head of government will exploit the “Qatar Gate”. But why should one assume that all other skeptics of the European project will not do the same? MEPs would be well advised to get their house in order as soon as possible – and above all to get off their high horse. The plain truth is that money buys influence everywhere.
The Brussels correspondent Daniel Steinvorth Twitter follow.