An obscure EU body has been rocked by anonymous allegations over contract-rigging by a senior official.
The European Economic and Social Committee, or EESC, which is based in the heart of the EU district in Brussels and provides non-binding policy advice, has transmitted all the information to the anti-fraud office, which is now conducting an inquiry.
In early March a letter signed only by “EESC staff representatives” was sent to staff at their offices and private homes, accusing Isabelle Le Galo Flores, the organisation’s secretary general since 2024, of misappropriating public funds and channeling contracts to her friends and family.
Signed by “staff representatives,” it alleged that she had rigged public contracts for her friends. Enclosed was a photo purporting to show Flores posing with successful bidders.
“Ms Le Galo Flores seems to handle the Committee like her own private company,” the letter alleged.
The spokesperson for the EESC told Euractiv that Le Galo Flores had no comment on the allegations.
Two days after the letters began to appear, EESC President Séamus Boland acknowledged their existence in an email to staff. “I want you all to know that I take this matter very seriously and that we are monitoring this situation very closely. I am taking all the appropriate measures with all the competent authorities,” he wrote.
The official staff representatives, grouped together in three trades unions, immediately distanced themselves from the letter, saying they were not behind it, according to email correspondence seen by Euractiv.
In the weeks since, staffers expressed concern that an internal investigation to root out the apparent whistleblowe has gone too far. “Halt the witch hunt,” three trade unions wrote in a joint email circulated last week, claiming that emails and internet usage had been subjected to review – a step they described as excessive and arbitrary.
“The atmosphere is really horrible,” one of the 700 staffers told Euractiv’s Rapporteur. “People are afraid.”
An EESC spokesperson rejected the allegations, stating that the review, now concluded, “did not in any way involve accessing staff email accounts or internet usage”. The spokesperson added that the EU’s anti-fraud office, OLAF, had opened an examination and that further comment would be inappropriate at this stage.
OLAF was contacted for a comment.
The EESC spokesperson said the matter was “proactively transmitted immediately to OLAF by the president”. “As a result of this proactive approach there is now an OLAF examination under way and further comment would not be appropriate at this stage.”
This article has been updated
(bw)
Source:
www.euractiv.com