The plenary of European Parliament removed this Tuesday from the position of vice president the Greek deputy Eva Kaili, arrested since Friday as the main suspect of receiving bribes that would implicate Qatarin a scandal that shakes said legislative institution and that some media have called “Qatargate”.
Kaili’s removal as vice president was approved by an overwhelming majority of 625 votes in favor, with just one against and two abstentions, according to a report by AFP. The Eurolegislator’s lawyer, Michalis Dimitrakopoulos, affirms that Kaili is innocent.
In view of the ongoing investigations,@Europarl_EN has decided that Eva Kaili is no longer one of its Vice-Presidents.
This decision is effective immediately.
We will continue to fully cooperate with relevant national law enforcement and judicial authorities.
— Roberta Metsola (@EP_President) December 13, 2022
The Conference of Presidents (a body that brings together the head of the European Parliament and the leaders of the political groups) had recommended to the plenary the dismissal of Kaili, although in an official note they did not identify her by name.
In that note, they indicated that Parliament will immediately begin an “internal reform process to ensure that transparency and accountability are reinforced (…). This begins today with the early termination of the position of the vice president involved.”
An investigation opened by the Belgian prosecutor’s office led to the arrest and indictment of Kaili and three other people, suspected of receiving large sums of money from a “Persian Gulf State”, which would be Qatar, in exchange for defending the interests of the emirate. The Doha government denies having done anything wrong, according to BBC.
The 44-year-old MEP was arrested after Belgian investigators found bags full of cash at her residence. The Belgian federal prosecutor’s office announced Monday that, in raids carried out at three different locations, it seized hundreds of thousands of euros in cash.
Police also raided an office of the European Parliament in Brussels to obtain computer data from a dozen officials.
Watchdogs and opposition MEPs have said the investigation could represent one of the biggest corruption scandals in the history of the European Parliament.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said that the accusations are “very serious” and proposed the creation of a new ethics body for the EU, according to a report from the BBC. For her part, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, warned that “European democracy is being attacked.”
The European Parliament is the only EU institution elected by the population of the 27 member countries of the bloc and its role is to study proposed laws and vote on them.
The term “Qatargate” is used in reference to “water gate”, the great political scandal that in the early 70s of the last century broke out with the theft of documents at the headquarters of the National Committee of the United States Democratic Party.
With information from BBC, AFP and the European Parliament.
