In February 2023, a train crash in Tempi, central Greece, claimed 57 lives, many of them young people. This week the trial finally began to determine who was responsible for the catastrophe. But not only are the victims’ families doubtful that justice will be served – the role played by EU institutions is also being overlooked.
The tragedy might have been avoided had an EU-funded contract, signed in 2014 to reconstruct and upgrade Greece’s railway signalling and remote control systems, been implemented.
Though the shortcomings of Greece in maintaining its railway system have been widely reported, the European Commission’s position remains unclear. The EU Public Prosecutor, Laura Kövesi, had already launched an investigation prior to the accident, after identifying irregularities within the contract.
In an interview with Euractiv, Kövesi questioned how it was possible that no one had detected that something was amiss.
“It led us to ask how these issues went unnoticed. Throughout the lifecycle of the project, there were a number of irregularities and concerns, yet none were reported – neither at national nor European level, nor by the managing authority, auditors, oversight bodies, or other institutions,” she said.
Kövesi did not single out any particular institution. When asked about the Commission, she replied that the EPPO had not received any report.
When Euractiv asked the Commission whether it had identified or reported the irregularities in the contract, we received no response.
A legitimate question, therefore, is whether the EU officials responsible for overseeing the contract in DG REGIO are still in position or have since been replaced.
Furthermore, why did DG MOVE fail to take action against Greece after identifying, in 2019, the absence of a permanent, independent railway accident investigation body as a breach of EU law?
This leads to the most pressing question of all: are Eurocrats ever held to account?
The EU can call for fighting corruption in member states, but setting your own house in order should take priority before lecturing others.
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Source:
www.euractiv.com
