The shortcomings of the European Parliament to combat cases like Alvise’s

22 months ago the outbreak of Qatargate, a bribery scheme from Morocco and Qatar to a network of politicians and assistants, shocked the European Parliament. The controls had failed and an institution much reviled by the public (only 42% of citizens have a positive image and it is the highest percentage in its history, according to the latest Eurobarometer) found itself in the center of the hurricane. The groups then promised to tighten their rules. However, the functioning of the European Parliament remains opaque and lacks resources to detect and combat cases such as that of the agitator Luis ‘Alvise’ Pérez that elDiario.es revealed.

The MEPs’ code of conduct expressly prohibits the receipt of money in exchange for exerting influence or guiding the direction of the vote. In the middle of the campaign, Alvise Pérez received 100,000 euros in cash to bypass the Court of Accounts from a cryptocurrency businessman to whom he promised to “influence legislation on financial and civil freedom.”