Further details have emerged regarding the corruption scandal involving the European People’s Party (EPP), which came to light last week. As reported earlier by Hungarian Conservative, the Belgian authorities, in conjunction with the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), are investigating individuals closely associated with EPP President Manfred Weber. At that time the Spanish newspaper La Gaceta identified only Weber’s chief of staff, Ouarda Bensouag, as a potential suspect. She is alleged to have received payments from the European Parliament in her official capacity while simultaneously being compensated by the EPP in her role as a political functionary.

However, according to exclusive information from European Conservative, the scandal may be far more complex than initially thought, shedding light on how Weber has been operating for years. Anonymous sources within the EPP indicate that a senior policy advisor, Udo Zolleis, along with Manfred Weber’s social media manager, is also implicated in the corruption scandal.

The ‘Corleone’ of the EPP

In the story, Manfred Weber appears more like Vito Corleone from the iconic film trilogy The Godfather than the leader of the largest political group in the European Parliament. According to three current and former employees, who requested anonymity to speak freely, Weber has been placing his allies in key positions and awarding loyalty through questionable contracts. This strategy enables him to gradually consolidate control over the party while silencing any dissenting voices. Many staff members are deeply dissatisfied with his management style but are too fearful of jeopardizing their jobs and careers to speak out, one of the sources informed European Conservative.

The newspaper reached out to the individuals involved; however, only Pedro Lopez, the EPP group press officer, responded. He stated—according to the article—that neither of the two individuals held active work contracts with the group during the 2019 EU election campaign period. According to Lopez, Zolleis suspended his employment with the Parliament (the EPP group) from January to May 2019, while the social media manager was hired only in October 2020, after the period under investigation.

‘Many staff members are deeply dissatisfied with his management style but are too fearful of jeopardizing their jobs and careers to speak out’

Furthermore, Lopez reiterated the EPP’s press release from last Wednesday, in which the group denies the existence of the investigation, or at least claims to have no knowledge of it. ‘We have not been approached by the EPPO, nor by the Belgian authorities, or indeed by any other law enforcement agency, regarding any possible investigation of any kind,’ he stated.

However, anonymous sources who spoke to the newspaper assert otherwise. One source, who is in contact with the Belgian authorities, insists that there is an active investigation into the finances of certain senior aides from that period. He claims that several EPP employees have already been questioned, with more set to be interviewed this week, and stated that ‘everyone within the EPP knows’ this concerns Bensouag and Zolleis.

According to sources, Manfred Weber’s team is currently working to minimize the damage caused by the scandal and to protect the two high-profile individuals involved. As one staff member explained: ‘Bensouag and Zolleis are Weber’s right and left hands. Both are extremely powerful and among the most influential members of the EPP in the European Parliament, thanks to Weber. They have a say in everything, from personnel reshuffling to political strategy.’

Loyalists, Manipulation and Bending the Rules

But how did Weber manage to extend his power so widely and deeply within the EPP? To understand this, we must return to 2019, when the European Council did not elect the German politician as President of the European Commission. It is also important to note that Viktor Orbán voted against Weber, and since then, the German politician has been doing everything in his power to undermine the Hungarian Prime Minister.

Following this, Weber allegedly began replacing long-time staff members in key positions of power with his own allies, often without prior experience in the relevant fields, and at the expense of those who were far more qualified. ‘In 2022, for instance, five senior employees were dismissed simultaneously, including two deputy secretaries-general, simply because Weber preferred to install his own people in their positions. Their only transgression was not belonging to his camp of loyalists,’ the article says.

Why are they not speaking out against this within the EPP? Sources indicate that doing so would be equal to political suicide. ‘Employees who are openly critical of Weber usually do not remain for long, and antagonizing him or his closest aides can jeopardize one’s entire career in the EU bubble.’

‘The point is that Weber wields extreme power, and despite his preaching about EU values and lecturing others at every opportunity, he manages the group like a dictator. Rather than the European People’s Party, it should be referred to as Weber’s People’s Party,’ one source states.

In addition to intimidation and influence, Weber is said to prefer interpreting the rules to suit his own agenda and circumventing them. ‘It is no coincidence that since he assumed leadership of the EPP, one scandal has followed another,’ one source remarks.

‘Now, the point of the story is not about a few months’ of double salaries or Weber’s autocratic leadership style—one we’ve known and the other is not an isolated case in the European Parliament—, our sources agreed. The point is that this probe is looking into two of the highest-level officials of the European Parliament’s largest group, whose position and power is directly linked to Weber’s. If they go down, there’s no telling of what else could be unraveled or who else could be implicated,’ the article concludes.

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