by Authorities searched European Parliament offices on Monday as part of an investigation into alleged corruption, Belgian prosecutors said.
The investigation concerns allegations that figures working for World Cup host Qatar paid large bribes to European politicians to influence political debate.
A vice-president of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili, and other lawmakers were involved in the scandal.
Kaili was arrested on Friday after police allegedly found “bags of money” in her home.
The purpose of Monday’s search “was to seize data,” the Belgian public prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
Investigators said they also searched private homes and seized several hundred thousand euros.
So far, four people have been arrested and charged with “participation in a criminal organisation, money laundering and corruption,” Belgian authorities said.
The reaction of the President of the European Parliament
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola on Monday described the scandal as an “attack” on EU democracy.
“The enemies of democracy, for whom the very existence of this parliament is a threat, will stop at nothing,” Metsola told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg, France.
He blamed “malicious actors linked to autocratic third countries”, saying they had “allegedly armed NGOs, trade unions, individuals, aides and MEPs in an attempt to subvert our processes”.
“There will always be some for whom big money is always worth the risk,” Metsola said.
“The essential thing is that these people understand that they will be caught, that our services work and that they will have to face the full extent of the law, as happened in this case.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen previously said the allegations were “of the utmost concern, very serious”.
Greece freezes Kaili’s assets
Officials in Greece on Monday said they had frozen Kaili’s assets following her arrest by Belgian police on corruption charges.
Kaili, a 44-year-old former TV presenter, was accused of corruption in Brussels on Sunday.
He has spoken publicly in support of Qatar’s recent labor reforms.
The European Parliament said on Saturday that Kaili had been suspended from her duties, in particular that of representing the speaker of the parliament, Metsola, in the Middle East.
The Greek socialist party PASOK, of which Kaili is a member, said it was expelling her.
How other EU figures have reacted to the allegations
Corruption allegations have rocked EU lawmakers and led to calls for institutions to be investigated to root out foreign influence.
“Certainly the news is very worrying,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said as he arrived at a meeting of foreign ministers. He added that no officials from the bloc’s diplomatic service or overseas missions had been implicated.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said the “full force of the law” must be used in the case. “It’s about Europe’s credibility, so that has to trigger consequences in various areas,” she said.
Vitor Teixeira, a Transparency International’s senior policy officer, said the investigation so far had shown the scandal was widespread.
“I I mean, there’s a slew of different individuals in different positions. So I definitely wouldn’t be surprised if there are more people involved as the days go by,” he told DW, adding, “It’s a very serious situation we’re in and it’s unprecedented in at least the last 20 years.”
For Many years, Teixeira pointed out, Transparency International has claimed that the European Parliament has “poor integrity and anti-fraud rules”. But “to a large extent we were ignored,” she noted.
fb, rc/rt (AFP, Reuters)
