The EU didn’t have such a political scandal, as at the junction of 2022-2023. But it seems that the peak has not yet been passed, because new details and characters arise in the political series about bribes to European officials from Qatar and Morocco.
Episode 1: “White girl with an apple of temptation”
The first figure was Eva Kaili, the vice-president of the European Parliament and the representative of Greece from the Socialist Party. At the end of 2022, she was accused of corruption in favor of Qatar. After a search of the apartment where the 44-year-old beauty lived, the physical evidence was partially found. For example, a bag with 600 thousand euros, which Kaili received for lobbying the interests of Qatar. The result of this and other crimes was the holding of the World Cup in football in this country.
Of course, for politicians, it is not about sports or sports achievements, but about reforms and laws that can be “promoted” on the pretext of the championship. Therefore, the corruption levers brought huge dividends.
Episode 2: “Dangerous talkative suspect”
The next character is Pierre Panzeri, a former Italian member of the European Union. It was less than a month after his arrest that he agreed to give a full statement about the bribes he had given. The deputy promised to provide a whole list of important facts, such as financial schemes and agreements between officials, countries involved in illegal schemes, people who took bribes, etc.
Pierre Pantzeri admitted his guilt and agreed to cooperate with the investigation, which caused tension in the high circles of the European Parliament. He said that he is the leader of a criminal organization that was created. For such sincerity, the ex-deputy is counting on the mitigation of the punishment. He faced 5 years in prison, 4 of which were suspended.
Episode 3: “These hands took nothing!”
The next episode was the arrest of Andreo Cozzolino. He is accused of receiving benefits from third countries in exchange for necessary EU decisions. It was not easy to obtain an arrest warrant, as it interfered with parliamentary immunity. It was difficult to remove the parliamentary immunity from Cozzolino, but in the end, it was possible.
In the European Parliament, he worked in various departments and structures at various times:
- Committee on Regional Development (since 2014);
- Subcommittee on Human Rights (since 2019);
- Committee on Budgetary Control (2009-2012);
- Budget Committee (2009-2013);
- Committee on Petitions (2014-2019).
This gave Cozzolino the opportunity to contact and build relationships with a large number of MEPs who are able to influence the decisions that are made.
Unlike Panzeri, Andreo Cozzolini completely denies his guilt and is not going to cooperate with the investigation.
Episode 4: “Chorus of the innocents”
In the same period, Mark Tarabella was also arrested. In Brussels, during his detention, he was accused of supporting certain positions in favor of a third country in exchange for money during his two years as a member of the European Parliament. According to preliminary estimates, the amount of these payments is 120-140 thousand EUR.
Mark Tarabella also pleads not guilty to what he is accused of. He claimed this during the interrogation conducted after the arrest.
The voices of Andreo Cazzolini and Mark Tarabella are echoed by the official Doha, asserting that Qatar did not participate in any corruption schemes.
The number of persons involved in the case is increasing. 1.5 million EUR were seized only during searches in 2 months, but it is clear that the main funds received from corruption schemes are not kept in cash at home.
The case risks becoming a real volcano, in which information about many famous people will explode. This is no longer an ordinary crime committed by officials, but rather a test of European society’s compliance with the legal principles it declares. If even high-ranking officials brutally trample these principles, then hopes for the rule of law are simply an illusion. But if all the participants are punished, then the principles of the European Parliament are not empty words.
