Posted on 11/04/2019 2:37:40 PM PST by Olog-hai
A European agency hit back on Monday against claims that money meant for farming was used to prop up “oligarchs and political patrons” in central and eastern Europe.
The European commission has “zero tolerance to fraud” and “very clear rules for how funds should be managed” insisted spokesman Daniel Rosario against allegations published in the New York Times.
Mina Andreeva, spokeswoman for OLAF — the EU anti-fraud office also denied that it was the EU’s job to ensure farming subsidies were spent correctly.
”We are not here to replace national governments,” she said. “We cannot and will not do the work for them.”
The New York Times found that some of the EU’s €59 billion ($65 billion) farm subsidies from its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was being misused by corrupt government officials, notably in Hungary and the Czech Republic. …
(Excerpt) Read more at dw.com ...
No surprise that these old Communist countries are thieves and not to be trusted.
It’s not true until the EU denies it.
Where is the investigation into American $$$ going into the Ukraine over, say, the last 10 years?
But we like Hungary.
> The European commission has “zero tolerance to fraud”
LOL!
Deutsche Welle gives the impression billions are involved, with the sub-heading -
-A recent report alleged government officials in Hungary and the Czech Republic misused €59 billion in farming subsidies-
before finally qualifying it with -
-The New York Times found that SOME of the EU’s €59 billion ($65 billion) farm subsidies from its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was being misused by corrupt government officials, notably in Hungary and the Czech Republic-
the only amounts mentioned are:
-A company formed by the Czech prime minister, Andrej Babis, collected at least $42 million in subsidies last year.-
-In recent years, according to a Times analysis of Hungarian payment data, the largest private recipients of farm subsidies were companies controlled by Mr. Meszaros and Sandor Csanyi, an influential businessman in Budapest.
Last year alone, companies controlled by the two men received a total of $28 million in subsidies.-
NYT is actually more honest up-front, but note the use of “populist” in the headline -
-NYT: The Money Farmers: How Oligarchs and POPULISTS Milk the E.U. for Millions
The European Union spends $65 billion a year subsidizing agriculture. But a chunk of that money emboldens strongmen...
Tomás García Azcárate, a longtime European agriculture official who now trains the Continent’s policymakers: “The European Union has very limited instruments for dealing with gangster member states,” he said. “It’s true on policy, on agriculture, on immigration. It’s a real problem.”-
however, the entire story is just another beat-up of so-called “populist” governments:
4 Nov: Foreign Policy: Europe’s Populist Governments Have a Problem: Their Capitals
City-level opposition could be the key to defeating populism in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and beyond.
by Tim Gosling
The rise of populist, nationalist governments in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia have made these countries, the Visegrad Group, the black sheep of Europe...
https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/11/04/europes-populist-governments-have-a-problem-their-capital-cities-czech-republic-hungary-poland-slovakia/
Sure, if the word of OLAF is to be trusted.
Never mind the New York Slimes.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.