By George Vichas
The European Parliament is shaken after the revelations about Qatargate and the arrest of the Greek MEP, and one of the body's vice-presidents Eva Kaili.
A heavy and heavy atmosphere, suspicion and lost credibility make up the picture of the European Parliament after what has come to light.
Speaking to the Cyprus Times, AKEL MEP Giorgos Georgiou said that what is happening has damaged the credibility of the European Parliament.
"Tip of the iceberg that characterises it as rotten"
As he noted, the case of Ms Kaili is neither the first nor the last. "It is just the tip of an iceberg that is characterised by a rot because the EU itself has blood ties with business interests and at times it emerges as a hotbed of scandals."
Commenting on the fact that many people said they were not surprised by the news and that they had not fallen from the clouds, Mr. Georgiou noted that some who are a bit suspicious see and understand that these phenomena of corruption and corruption have been around for many years and touch all levels.
Georgiou also referred to previous scandals, recalling the emissions of Wolkswagen, Mr. Barroso who took a position at Goldman Sachs, Mr. Sarkozy who was sentenced to residential detention and suspended imprisonment because he too had relations with Qatar, the Pandora Papers which revealed the involvement of EU officials, Commissioners and even Prime Ministers in various Member States.
An army of lobbyists and big interests
"We are talking about a climate which through the presence of lobbyists, an army of lobbyists in Brussels, in addition to the 15 thousand who spend hundreds of millions a year. An effort is being made and it seems to succeed several times to exert pressure so that the interests of big capital, the big monopoly organisations are reflected in the legislation as well."
In response to a relevant question, the AKEL MEP said that the heavy climate had led from the beginning to the removal of Ms Kaili and from then on they were awaiting the investigations of the Belgian authorities. He noted that they acted in an efficient way which is nothing like the way prosecutorial or investigative authorities operate in Cyprus where they essentially "cover up" scandals.
"No one approached me"
Asked whether he was approached either in this case or in the past to pass a resolution or an amendment that unknowingly served hidden interests, Georgiou was categorical. "No one approached me, perhaps because they knew my answer."
Pessimism about meaningful investigation and efficiency
Regarding the next day and how the EU can put the brakes on such phenomena and regain its lost credibility, after Roberta Metsola said that European democracy is under attack by calling for sweeping changes and investigation of corruption, Mr. Georgiou appeared pessimistic. "I am quite pessimistic about the intentions to have a meaningful investigation and especially about its effectiveness. Self-cleansing in this climate and with these structures that exist at the level of the EU and the European Parliament, I do not believe that it can be done in an effective way," he noted.
In conclusion, he stressed that only with the objective intervention of external institutions, such as the actions of the Belgian financial investigator, could some things be done with the need of course for internal changes, greater transparency and in our case, the establishment of a committee to investigate all these issues.
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
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