ATHENS, April 6 (Reuters) — Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called on European Union prosecutors Monday to rapidly determine whether to bring charges against members of his conservative New Democracy party who are under investigation in a major agricultural subsidy fraud case, as he works to limit political damage from the growing scandal.
The investigation has shaken the government following European prosecutors’ decision last year to charge numerous Greek livestock farmers with fraudulently claiming pastureland ownership to illegally obtain millions of euros in EU agricultural subsidies, reportedly with assistance from government workers and conservative political figures.
Expanding their investigation, prosecutors requested last week that Greece’s parliament remove legal immunity from at least 11 conservative members of parliament, including previous cabinet ministers, to enable investigation into suspected crimes against the European Union’s financial interests.
The charges facing the legislators, who enjoy constitutional protection from prosecution under Greek law, include encouraging breach of trust and computer fraud, based on evidence collected by Greek law enforcement.
Mitsotakis, who has reorganized his cabinet, acknowledged in a public statement that the request represents a significant development but noted the cases differ in seriousness and expressed his commitment to protecting the lawmakers’ right to be presumed innocent.
“I am calling on the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, once (their) parliamentary immunity has been lifted, to proceed swiftly with all investigative acts and to decide whether, how many and whom it intends to prosecute,” he said.
Mitsotakis additionally promised reforms to enhance transparency and combat favoritism, including a proposal that parliament members appointed as ministers be replaced in parliament rather than serving in both roles simultaneously.
EU PROSECUTORS PROVIDE EVIDENCE TO GREEK PARLIAMENT
Parliament received the evidence provided by European prosecutors along with their immunity removal request on Saturday.
The materials, reviewed by Reuters, include recorded conversations between the parliament members — some former ministers or their staff — and high-ranking officials from OPEKEPE, the agency responsible for managing EU agricultural subsidies.
“We’ll be exposed … we certainly need to fix this,” one legislator told an OPEKEPE representative. Prosecutors contend in the documents that the lawmakers used their political influence to pressure agency personnel.
Greek constitution protects lawmakers and ministers from prosecution, requiring parliamentary action to remove their immunity.
New Democracy controls 156 seats in the 300-member parliament. Two former ministers involved in the investigation have rejected any wrongdoing and proactively requested their immunity be removed.
An ethics committee will examine the matter on Tuesday, with parliament anticipated to vote on removing the lawmakers’ immunity next week.
