European prosecutors asked to investigate alleged corruption at EU body

Photo: cor.europa.eu

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has received a dossier concerning alleged corruption at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), following an administrative investigation by the EU’s anti-fraud agency OLAF.

OLAF transmitted its findings to the EPPO after investigating allegations that a senior EESC official manipulated public procurement contracts, news portal Rapporteur reported Friday.

The EESC confirmed that OLAF had referred the case to the EPPO.

“The EESC was informed by OLAF today that this case has been referred to the EPPO. Under these circumstances, the EESC cannot comment further,” an EESC spokesperson told the outlet.

The allegations, which emerged in March, concern Isabel Le Galo Flores, the EESC’s secretary-general, who has been accused of running the EU advisory body as her own private business and steering contracts toward personal associates.

The EPPO told Anadolu that it does not generally comment on ongoing investigations or publicly confirm the cases it is handling.

“As a general rule, the EPPO does not comment on ongoing investigations, nor do we publicly confirm which cases we are working on, in order not to endanger the possible ongoing procedures and their outcome,” the prosecutor’s office said.

Earlier this month, members of the European Parliament’s Budgetary Control Committee questioned the EESC over the allegations during an annual scrutiny process.

The committee has also faced criticism over its role and continued existence.

On Wednesday, French politician Marine Le Pen described the EESC and its sister body, the Committee of the Regions, as “completely pointless.”

The EESC is an EU advisory body established under the Treaty of Rome, representing employers, workers and other civil society groups in the bloc’s policymaking process.

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