The «tangentopoli» in the EU sauce has subjugated the politicians elected by the Democratic Party. Matteo Renzi: «The responsibilities are personal, but the double standard is evident»
The enemy of European progressives. Always ready to point the finger at businessmen, VAT, professionals. King, according to them, of constantly evading taxes and taking advantage of the tax system without mercy. Democrats in words only, but quick to cash in on sumptuous kickbacks and steer continental policy in favor of Arab countries that certainly don’t stand out for their tolerance of Catholics, women and gays. Two months later, Qatargate, the Tangentopoli of the EU, continues to be talked about. In fact, it doesn’t take a researcher with the talent of Sherlock Holmes to realize that we are just at the beginning of an investigation that threatens to overwhelm much of the European Parliament.
But let’s take a step back. It was December 9, 2022, Italians were divided between those who followed the World Cup – despite our national team not participating – and those who dedicated themselves to looking for gifts for Christmas, which was already approaching. That day’s newspapers opened with the news of the search of Eva Kaili’s offices.
Investigators sent Belgian agents to the offices and home of the Vice-President of the European Parliament. Twenty-four hours later, the arrest of the Greek MEP was confirmed. But Eva Kaili was not the only one under investigation: in fact, her father was also arrested, who according to investigators, when he smelled burning, was close to fleeing to some Caribbean paradise and boyfriend of Greek politician Francesco Giorgi. The latter was a parliamentary advisor, in the last legislature, to Antonio Panzeri, who in turn was arrested by the fardados. Incredibly, half a million euros in cash was found in the home of the former general secretary of the Metropolitan Chamber of Labor in Milan, in office from 1995 to 2003, elected from the ranks of the Democratic Party. Yes, you read correctly. Half a million. A huge amount, especially for those who demanded that Italians and Europeans pay even a meager coffee exclusively with a credit card, so as not to circumvent the tax authorities. Deep down, the usual pathetic came out with two faces, the public and the private. Obviously, Panzeri was in magnificent company: indeed, suitcases and bags full of money were also found in Giorgi and Kaili’s homes. Magistrates deemed the Queen’s tests, impossible to refute, the infamous “smoking gun”.
Luca Visentini and Niccolò Figa-Talamanca are also involved in the story. This money, in large quantities, served a specific and decidedly not very noble purpose. Some MEPs (investigators were immediately convinced that the number of politicians involved is much higher) were allegedly paid by Qatar and Morocco to guide Brussels’ choices in favor of these two nations. One distinction must be rigorously underlined: this is not a normal, logical and completely legal lobbying action carried out to obtain advantageous commercial exchanges or to plan new infrastructure. No, here we are talking, clearly and clearly, about massive corruption activity.
According to the Belgian media, Panzeri’s wife had been intercepted, mentioning the name of Abderrahim Atmoun, the current Moroccan ambassador to Poland, a former member of the Moroccan parliament and particularly active in Brussels. The magistrates, who are investigating one of the worst scandals of the post-war period, are convinced that a kind of political base in Rabat has been created in the center of Moroccan studies in Belgium. In 2018, a photo was taken that portrays Atmoun and Panzeri together with another protagonist of the story, Andrea Cozzolino, MEP elected by the Democratic Party.
A complex and difficult investigation, born at least three years ago. The magistrates, already in 2019, observed with some distrust a vote, approved with more than four hundred yeses. An agreement, specifically, on fisheries between the European Union and Morocco. Of course, Panzeri voted in favor of a document later rejected without appeal by the European Court twenty-four months later. This provision also included the territories of Western Sahara, claimed by Rabat, but on whose sovereignty there are still divergent positions today. “Panzeri left the Democratic Party because he said I was against the values of the left. But what were those values? – recalled Matteo Renzi, commenting on the Qatargate scandal – Criminal responsibilities are personal. What is certain is that in some cases there is a kind of duplicity, of hypocrisy, especially on the left. When others do things they are corrupt and dangerous, if it is at home they are comrades who make mistakes. This is not good. Moralists without morals have no future.”
The track in Qatar is also very interesting. The main objective was to exempt citizens of the emirate who wanted to travel within the Old Continent from visas. A measure approved by the Libe commission (civic liberties, justice and internal affairs) on the 1st of December. A vote in which, oddly enough, Eva Kaili also participated. That she expressed her assent, in contradiction with the vast majority of her reference parliamentary group, the Socialists and Democrats. Another fundamental point was the management of the last World Cup. Doha called for making European positions on respect for workers’ demands and civil rights less pressing. A still incipient investigation, which brings into play complex but fundamental global geopolitical balances and the honesty of a political group, that represented by the European left, which has always been very attentive to the morals of others. And very little for yourself.
Source: IL Tempo
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
