EU Parliament Bribery Plot: Murky and Ever Thickening

The corruption scandal plaguing the EU Parliament has proven more extensive than assumed. After discovering Qatar sought to use bribery to steer the institution, Belgian investigators are looking askance at another nation that might have tried to do the same: Morocco.

According to court documents that De Morgen was able to consult, former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri (S&D), a key figure in the elaborate scheme, was advising active MEPs within the S&D (Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats) on policy that would favor not only Qatar but Morocco as well.

The Moroccan ambassador in Poland, the documents claim, is presumed to have made the arrangements. As a reward for Panzeri’s and his associates’ efforts, payment—whether by cash or by other material goods—was made.

The European Parliament has drawn unwanted attention to itself since Belgian investigators conducted searches last weekend as part of the anti-corruption investigation.

Belgian courts strongly suspect that Qatar has been trying to influence decision-making by offering large sums of money and lavish gifts to individuals holding strategically important positions within the EU Parliament. This becomes extra controversial because of the country’s poor record with respect to workers’ rights, particularly regarding the dangerous conditions during the building of football stadiums ahead of the World Cup.

On Tuesday, December 13th, in his first remarks on the events of the past couple of days, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said, somewhat accusatory: “Belgian justice is doing what, at first sight, the European Parliament has not done.” As he applauded the work of Belgian law enforcement, he noted that “the European Parliament has a lot of means to regulate itself,” but that apparently, “this is largely a system of auto-control based on voluntary efforts, which has clearly not been sufficient.”

The same day, in a repeat of Friday, police sealed off 10 more offices in the European Parliament’s Strasbourg headquarters—offices which are all linked to the individuals targeted in the Brussels raids. The one belonging to Mychelle Rieu, an official working on the Parliament’s subcommittee on human rights, was among them. After police seized some computer equipment, the office was unsealed.

In addition, the office of an assistant to Italian MEP Pietro Bartolo (who, like most of the suspects, also belongs to the S&D group), was sealed off.