Qatargate explained: Why did Qatar allegedly bribe European Parliament members? Who is Eva Kaili?
The Greek MEP denies bribery after more than $1 million was found in various locations by Belgian police.
Eva Kaili MEP has been removed from the post of vice-president of the European Parliament a day after she was arrested on charges of allegedly taking bribes from Qatar. Three other MEPs also remain under arrest following the Belgian prosecutor’s decision to charge four of the six arrested in the ‘Qatargate’ case.
A number of searches conducted over the last few days revealed more than €1.5 million ($1.6 million) in cash stashed in locations, such as a suspect’s house as well as inside a briefcase in a Belgian hotel. Sources said that €150,000 was found at Kaili’s flat.
Asked if that was true, her lawyer said, “I have no idea if any money was found or how much was found.”
“It is suspected that third parties in political and/or strategic positions within the European parliament were paid large sums of money or offered substantial gifts to influence parliament’s decisions,” the office said in a statement. The Qatari government has denied any involvement.
European Parliament leader Roberta Metsola has spoken of “difficult days for European democracy”.
Who is Eva Kaili?
A student of architecture and civil engineering, Kaili was involved in Greek television. After studying a master’s degree in European Politics, she became a news anchorwoman for Mega Channel. Kaili took her first steps in politics in 2007 at the age of 29 when she was elected to the Greek Parliament with the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK). Seven years later, she made the jump to European politics by running in the elections to the European Parliament.
She is an MEP for the Party of European Socialists (PES) and was vice-president of the European Parliament, though she was stripped of this role in a 625 to one vote on Tuesday. In addition, the Greek authorities have frozen her assets, accounts and property.
Who else is implicated?
The Greek politician is not the only representative of the European Parliament arrested, as her colleague within the PES Francesco Giorgi, the former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, and a lobbyist from Brussels were also arrested. Meanwhile, Kaili;s father and the secretary general of the International Trade Union Confederation , Luca Visentini, were released on probation, according to Novara Media.
The four accused are charged with membership of a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption or which they were placed under arrest warrant, according to the statement issued by the Belgian Public Prosecutor’s Office.