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Large Fraud, Corruption and Maladministration in the Use of Community Funds in PortugalWhat Is This?This is not the English version of the remaining pages of this site. This text was specially
conceived for international viewing. The subject is basically the same, but written in other words.
If it is not exactly the same, it is at least on the same subject, corruption
In this case, corruption covered up by the European Union office that was
created exactly to combat and fight corruption, according to what we can read
at the EU internet site.
From the facts we are also allowed to believe that one
Commissioner helped the covering up. After having read the facts, we cannot
make any statement or even assume really compromising conclusions. However, the
facts, as known by everyone in the country and the written official
documentation can be assimilated separately from opinions, and anyone understanding "2 + 2 = 4"
can take their own conclusions.
Furthermore, the involvement of the President of
the Commission himself cannot be excluded. In fact, he was part of the
government under which the largest fraud, corruption and maladministration in
the use the of Community funds happened. We do not really think he was
actively involved simply because of the position he occupied while the facts happened, as minister of
foreign affairs. On the other hand, we do believe that being so close to that people,
his political fellows and comrades, he
has known about it all along. More, even if he were not part of the government,
he could never ignore what everyone in the country knew and knows, he was a citizen
living in. It was the talk of the day. Of every day. Wherever we would go we
could not avoid hearing people speaking about corruption cases involving
the Community funds, telling about the real cases happening right then or
recent. Even today it is still a subject of conversation. And corruption goes
on.
Nonetheless, we can be sure the President of the European
Union does know perfectly about the truth as mentioned here and there are very
strong probabilities for OLAF not investigating this case because it should make
a lot of harm to the president's political comrades and partners. Therefore,
i n any case, whatever we may believe or know, this is a hard case of undeniable
corruption within the European Union. This is irrefutable.
We do not want to impose our
ideas. We do not think of such procedure as advisable or even necessary. Anyone
can read both the exposition sent to the Commissioner, to OLAF an its director,
as well as the related correspondence. Anyone has enough wits to read and
conclude about the position taken both by OLAF and its superior Commissioner.
It must be observed that this Commissioner never wanted to answer directly.
After the position taken we are allowed to believe that all he wanted was to wash his
hands from not doing any justice to his political fellows. Corruption? Before going any further, it is supposed that everyone is currently
informed about the opinions of the EU frequently published about corruption and maladministration in countries
like Romania, concerning their projects on joining the Union. We will see that the European Union treats
differently the very same problems with different countries.
Therefore, an overwhelming question remains: Is there
maladministration and corruption within any of the European Union offices, departments or even commissioners? It
is up to the readers to take their own conclusions. In
despite of what can ve read on the EU site about controling the Community's
financial interests, when a real case is presented it can be dismissed, as
was the present case. We can see that corruption among the EU
commissions and OLAF is able to avoid investigations of very serioius evidence
on those crimes. We must recall that the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) was
set up in 1999 with a view to expanding the scope and enhancing the
effectiveness of action to combat fraud and other illegal activities
detrimental to the Community's interests. At the very top of
The powers of
OLAF list of duties in order to accomplish its mission is "to carry out
external administrative investigations as part of the fight against fraud,
corruption and any other illegal activity which adversely affects the
Community's financial interests and for the purpose of combating fraud
involving any other act or activity in breach of Community provisions".
OLAF's second duty on the same list is "to carry out internal administrative
investigations for the purposes of: - combating fraud, corruption and any other
illegal activity which adversely affects the Community's financial interests".
Now, who will investigate OLAF staff about their seriousness and ability on
dealing with the first duty on the list. As above, or about any other point on
the same list? Would it be a commissioner coming from one of the most corrupt
countries, according to EU reports we can read in profusion? Maybe...
Are they really doing what we can read in
here? Well the case presented and documented in this article is just like
one of those, a "white collar crime across the European Union single market",
as they put it! Nut the case presented here has never been hidden, everyone is
acquainted with at least one case. this assorted serial crime was committed in
the open, with the certainty of the criminal politicians that they would never
pay for it. And they were right, thanks to OLAF's EU. After all, politicians of
all parties are a big family. One has to be very badly disliked for most of his
fellows, like Slobodan Milosevic in order to be pursued.
Are OLAF and the Commission playing the ostrich when it regards politicians?
Would it be because the present president of the commission was a minister of
the corrupt government? Or is it because the chief of the group (the head of
that government under which most corruption occurred with the Community funds)
is now the president of the Portuguese Republic? Owing to the hard facts, one
cannot avoid these thoughts coming up to one's mind and ask these questions.
In such a clear case the democracy was
undermined by these behaviours, exactly according with the EU texts used to
fight it. The corruption has attained extremely heights. They offered
their incompetent militants and friends on high administrative positions.
Whoever had a connection with them or other political influent people received
large amounts of the Community funds, not for what they were meant, but just
for their personal use. Corrupt politicians have not been stopped for
distributing the Community funds this way. Therefore, they became outrageously
confident of impunity and they continued daring ever worse corruption,
destroyed democracy making the system a real oligarchic dictatorship where the
oligarchies are formed by the political clans. this is the prevailing system
today, only because the EU never investigated what they were doing with the
Community funds. Thank you EU for the end of democracy you promoted in this
country, in the name of freedom. After all, there is plenty of
reading about this matter on the EU internet site. Should we ignore that?
What has been going on in Portugal falls into the definition of organised crime
among politicians. The well documented cases are so many that the best
suggestion is to make a search with the following simple key words: [corruption
"Community Funds" site:.eu.] This search will produce over 670 results, but
other key words will help on understanding this subject too, and how it is
connected to the case documented on this site. On reading some parts we are
taken to believe that what we have under owe eyes are direct references to the
present case... This is not a blog, but you may live a message either
How It HappenedI think everyone in the European Union know or have heard about the deep political corruption within the Portuguese political oligarchy. As described on this page they have received many billions of Euros of the European Union funds for Portugal, used them with a most typical corruption, maladministration and stole large portions the way described on the present page. All these facts belong to the general common knowledge in the country. Everyone knows about what happened. It has been openly discussed everywhere and by everyone, again, as described ahead. It has been so widely and openly spoken and broadcast on television and radio that one has to ask himself what kept the European Union from investigating. Mostly when on October 2005 the European Commission released its annual progress reports on candidate countries. We could read at the Euronews site that Brussels had warned the governments of Bulgaria and Romania that their accession could be delayed by a year if they failed to tackle corruption and improve border controls. Some links to interesting pages are here, here and here. Search there for words like Bulgaria, Romania and corruption on their texts. The EU site has been remade and rearranged since, and some interesting decisions have become hard to find. The Enlargement Commissioner has constantly made remarks to some countries on these subjects, mainly to Romania and Bulgaria; we can read it almost anywhere in European reports regarding these countries. Everyone reading those texts will believe the European Union does care about corruption and maladministration of European funds. One will also believe that the commission should care about justice corruption, faked and mal administrated useless justice, as in Portugal. Also with laws that allow suspects to be kept in prison for years without judgement or ever having been formally accused. These are not special cases, they happen all the time. Prisons are full, populated by over a third without having been judged. Therefore, with such a hard core case known by everyone, one wonders why nobody in the EU ever asked any Portuguese government what has been done of the billions sent there. I have sent a general report to OLAF (Office Européen de Lutte Anti-Fraude – European Anti-Fraud Office). Simultaneously, I sent a copy both to Mr. Franz-Hermann Brüner, the Director General of OLAF since 2000, and to Mr. Siim Kallas, the commissioner for Administrative Affairs, Audit and Anti-Fraud, Both very experienced and able men according to their published profiles. You know what? They dismissed my complaint on the grounds that I should lead an investigation for them. Of course, they have not used exactly these words, but the meaning is implicit. I explained that the political corruption in Portugal involved all sources of money and pointed out in a way that could not leave any doubt that I was only complaining of corruption and maladministration of community funds and gave plenty of examples. Anyone can read and understand that on this page, even a child. The answer said literally, “OLAF is not in a position, for instance, to audit the use of European funds in a particular country, on the basis of an inference that if corruption exists in the country it will probably also involve European money.” Was tis because their brains are not as developed as those of a child's, or were they playing the stupid or the illiterate faking a misunderstanding? Why is the EU so justifiably hard on those new joining countries and completely loose on another where corruption and maladministration absolutely identical to the others have always been there, wholly unchanged and already before the joining date? Can we conclude anything else apart from the fact that if they refused to go ahead could have been only because they approve corruption and do not care about the community funds sent anywhere as soon as they have been approved? Or are they covering up corruption and maladministration in the use of the Community funds? Do they care that that funds have been paid for by honest working citizens and their families? Their answer must have a reason. As we know, only a theft can approve another theft. Consequently, only a corrupt can disregard corruption. PresentationAll important and meaningful correspondence has been transcribed. Correspondence and the complaint are by chronological order. Only some identification elements have been crossed. All correspondence has been copied to HTML format, except for one letter which is in PDF format. The links are at the end of the following exposition, which was sent simultaneously to OLAF (Office de Lute Anti-Fraude) and its director, Mr. Franz-Hermann Bruener, and as well as to Mr. Siim Kallas, the European Union Commissioner for AAAA (Administrative Affairs, Audit and Anti-Fraud) – the Commission overseeing OLAF.
Large Fraud, Corruption and Maladministration in the Use of Community Funds in PortugalSummary
IntroductionHave you ever thought why the Portuguese people are the most miserable in the EU? Has it ever come to your mind what led these people to the hole they actually have got into? Have you ever used the most elementary arithmetic to guess what has been done of the European funds for development received by the Portuguese governments? I am certain you do not have any definite answer to any of the above questions, because if you had you would have already investigated. The cause concerns the EU, and consequently OLAF. I am not someone with a law background, therefore not acquainted with what is meant by proper juridical terms and language. I am sorry, I am a simple citizen, but I will try to provide you with some of the answers for the starting subject with a simple description and simple common words and sentences Opinions and factsIf you really wish bothering to know what was made of the received funds it will not be
difficult to figure out a close idea before investigating deeply. After all, if very few people in this country
had a notion in the two past decades or less, now days almost everyone – at least half-educated – will present you
a very approximate opinion. If you ask them, they will tell you, giving plenty of sound reasons on what originated
the present situation. Like as how the funds were used to pay retirement pensions to people in their early 40s;
that suddenly lots of people (“politicians & friends”, as well as those receiving the funds but not using them for
the expected purposes) got immensely rich, buying estate and very expensive cars; that those who shared the
greatest part of the cake were the “politicians & friends”, who were also the most cautious not to show it in a
very ostensive way. Although, some have not made a great attempt on hiding it away, proudly showing it off, and
even creating foundations. At some time the funds where so widely spread that people got the idea that then, with
the help from the Community funds, they didn’t need to Mentality and civilisationIn fact, the future of the country was perfectly foreseeable for anyone not decoyed by the politicians in general. In the time when these facts were happening, I told this myself to several people, but they were so lured that most did not even understand the point. The rotten and corrupt politicians have been driving the country in such a way that Portugal today is definitely not a democratic country. Worse still, not even a civilized one. In one hand, while the democratically and intellectually more advanced countries started educating their children in a modern and proper way after World War II from kindergarten to university, with well trained and able staff, in Portugal this was completely disregarded. At first, only an embryonic system merely for well off people, then started changing in the late 1970’s for present state. Next, instead of making progress, the system has been progressively deteriorating with underrated and unprepared staff and unfit parents. In fact, many schools have become crime schools on their own way, not comparable to prisons, but with similar results. Unable teachers – either when being right or wrong on their decisions or behaviour – are often verbally or physically attacked by their pupils, backed up by parents, The ill educated parents and teachers generation (the later also unfit for their jobs), argue about the way children and teenagers must be educated. Over 45% school dropouts. At this point we can imagine the existing confusion about what education, civilisation and democracy are, as well as the kind of educated adults existing in the Country. It is evident that it was this kind of education what gave form to the present uncivilised and non-democratic character and demeanour of the people. In the other hand, some politicians and journalists dare stating Portugal is a democracy because people can vote in elections, deceivingly and maliciously hiding the fact that elections also existed during most of the time of the dictatorship, as well as the evidence that voting is no more than a small part of the whole that makes up democracy. I could present you a full list of symptoms, as well as provide you with real every day facts that everyone living here knows to back my words, but that is not the purpose of this writing. Thus, I must only present those directly connected or with an unequivocal meaning. I believe you must have already heard at least rumours about general corruption and maladministration, growing rumours presently coming up louder every day, louder and louder. The people have been deepened in a darkness of ignorance led by politicians and too many “understandable” journalists seeming to protect them. Once a newspaper director wrote to me the following (I do not reveal his/her name, but I keep the e-mail) and this is my own translation): “Journalists depend so much of their sources that even the best [journalists] end up too much dependant of them. Meaning, the sources practically ‘edit’ the papers. All [newspapers] – the problem is not specific to the [name of his/her newspaper]”. Hence, how politicians are covered up by journalists, either voluntarily or not, how ignorance is spread. Remember, Victor Hugo wrote in the 1860’s, “the ignorance is the mother of stupidity”. In the middle 1970’s, people in Portugal were about some 20 years behind the advanced European nations. In order to deceive the large amount of literate people more easily, politicians started adopting very low-grade language and have since done their best to keep them ignorant from what was going on around in Europe, making all the usual promises and much more. Worse still, people were maintained deeply ignorant on all fields, purposely, by both politicians and journalists. Almost all their sources of knowledge come from this sort of journalism, deceitful publicity and commercials. Can you realize what the reaction of the people would be if they were fully aware of were those politicians led them to? The unhappiness, disgrace they have been drowned, and the miserable the people are, all owing to those politicians alone? They are quite aware of maladministration and corruption, but the majority does not connect these facts with their miserable state. Therefore, politicians never think their efforts to hide the truth to be enough. They are simply malign, hateful and evil traitors with the help of the EU. Historical corruptionUnfortunately, the problem with corrupt politicians exists in every country, but they are exceptions and usually in a small proportion, therefore without great consequences. In Portugal, this is historically different. If you know Portuguese history, you will remember many cases. Most cases are well covered up by those having corrupt interests to defend. One of them was of terrible consequences, partially responsible for the republican system replacing monarchy because the people wanted progress and was literally fed up of their corrupt governments shortly succeeding one another without stop. Of course, changing from monarchy to republic did not solve the problem; the problem was not on the system, but on the character and behaviour of the politicians. In 1905, the politicians making up the political parties at the time were so corrupt with greed, disregarding completely the national interests and working only for their own parties and personal profit – almost like today – that the government and the parliament came to a deadlock, unable to govern the country. According to the constitution, the not corrupt party independent prime minister had to suspend the parliament until new elections. Five years later, after the fall of the monarchy, came many small dictators and democrats; at the end came a dictatorship that lasted for 38 years. As strange as it may seem, during these 38 years corruption was definitely not as high as before or afterwards. History proved again that a system does not make the people; the people make the system. Today, Portugal is the country of the EU where governments have a shorter life. This has appalling consequences in the country and a strong meaning, and that cannot be overlooked. Today, just like before, instead of serving the country, politicians use the country to serve themselves. Can you believe this sort of corrupt people will use Community funds properly, just because they are Community funds? The fault of the present situation must be seen as from two complementary sources. One of these sources is not because, as the French saying goes, “les politiciens sont un mal nécessaire à la démocratie”; corruption in Portugal is so deeply rooted and generally more widely spread among politicians than anywhere else to the point of being traitors to the Nation (as proved by their own conduct), covered up by journalists in general. Exceptions do exist for both of them, obviously, confirming the rule. The other source is the EU itself. The Community funds have not been used for their official purpose and the EU has not done anything about this, allowing the situation to come to the point where it is now. The people have been kept happily numb, mainly owing to the Community funds misused for giving them hope and throwing them sporadic breadcrumbs. Politicians have been giving away easy money instead of implementing development and true social benefits, therefore using the Community funds both for themselves (& friends) and to keep the people numbly happy to get re-elected. If it were not for these artificially injected hopes and for the ignorance, the people might well have rejected those corrupt and corrupting politicians, and this is what justifies their behaviour. Therefore, the fault lies also on the EU’s lack of checking the corrupt use of the Community funds, which misuse and actions have been extremely harmful to the Country. Can you also innocently believe the type of people that this people have become, to be serious enough not to get appropriated of the Community funds and use them wrongly, intentionally, on their own interest? Well, keep on reading. This is just a small part of the facts that have been disregarded by the EU on the fraud, maladministration and corruption in the use of Community funds Governmental administration and institutionsAccording to the common and general knowledge of the people, as well as to the continuously proved facts, the situation not being covered or hidden, you must bear in mind that Portuguese politicians are literally parasites, most of them having never had a job in their lives, aside from those corruptibly appointed by their parties. Most have always lived strictly this way, even getting rich. Where are the parties going to obtain so much money to pay high wages, in a very poor country, to so many thousands of politicians, many of them getting very rich? Where are the parties going to obtain so much money to pay high wages, in a very poor country, to so many thousands of politicians, many of them getting very rich? Such system cannot be anything else but fraudulent, parasitic and highly corrupt. It has become this way not only, but largely with the corrupt use of the Community funds. The bureaucratic system, as it is, is purposively maintained that way in order to allow only those close to the politicians & friends and with enough money to obtain the most important administrative services. Without corruption, money or expensive lawyers, the common citizen cannot get anything from the administration. Hence, the continuing growing gap between poor and rich, as known all over Europe but unseen by OLAF as a sign of corruption and maladministration (including the Community funds, of course, it is general and obviously not restricted to national funds), now positioning the country very far ahead, on the first European rank. These corrupt politicians are the very same administrating the Community funds. Is it possible for OLAF not to see the situation and simultaneously believe that the Community funds are not treated the same way, just because they are Community funds? Is OLAF not responsible for the very same situation for not acting accordingly? How the State works and the Well-Planed educational systemThe institutions do not work for two reasons. (1) All state institutions and administrations are managed by politicians. Instead of filling the posts with skilled and competent people enlisted by public applications and contests, the corrupt politicians have been keeping many thousands of these sorts of top jobs for themselves. This number was slightly reduced, first by an unhappily aborted trial by the government under António Guterres (now head of UNHCR; he was not able to dominate the corrupt militants interest) and lately by the present government, but they are still well over 2000! After elections, those jobs are handled from a political party to the militants of the replacing elected party. And so on, and on, and on. Should we say 2000 top jobs are permanently kept for 2000 parasites of whichever party is in government? The Universities and education in general are completely displaced, both in time and in quality; many degrees are not even recognised in many countries (medicine doctors, e.g.). Students come out either or simultaneously unprepared for the needed jobs and/or prepared for not needed jobs, so the industry CEOs appropriately claim. Coordination between schools and industry or other major noteworthy employers or according to the country’s needs is truly and completely inexistent. (2) All institutions are populated by common people brought up by the same inadequate schools and uncivilised parents. Their arrogance (obvious symptom of a triple problem: ignorance, stupidity and wickedness) is phenomenal. They never admit having committed any mistake and will fight back any sign of a mistake with all their strengths. How would you live in a country with people like this? This is the sort of people the April revolution generated. This is the people the corrupt politicians despise and betrayed by using the Europeans funds in their own private interest, for their own private profit. A triple betrayal: the Nation, the people they should serve, and the EU. The ridiculous and useless consumer protectionThe “Instituto do Consumidor” (and its agencies) is a consumer rights protection institution, operated by the government and the Portuguese European Consumer Centre. I know of someone that about a year and half ago presented a complaint on the amount of hours paid for a small job in an auto repair shop. Previously to check it up they wanted him to sign a submission including a condition where they would dismount his car to check up (what for, if the complaint was about time?) and give it back to him in pieces; then he should pay for reassembling the vehicle. He complained. The vice-president of the Institute phoned him and said they would not reassemble the car; they didn’t do it because that solves most of the problems presented to them; even if they agreed he was right because the complaint was not about the repair itself but the invoiced time alone, so having nothing to be fixed. The Institute – the vice-president said – did not have the money for that. He wrote him a letter with his reasons, skipping the fact that the Institute did not have the money. Either he would sign and would get his car back in pieces or they would not take action. Consequently, the Institute refused to solve his problem. Therefore, once again, where are the Community funds, including those supposedly specific for the European Consumer Centre? Is this not an example of maladministration? If you still believe this not to be enough, check up the anti-democratic privileges conceded to the people at the top. Presidents and vice-presidents, as well as with other government controlled enterprises. Fortunes are given to them in cars and lots of other benefits, including very high retirement pensions with just a few contributions, hundreds of thousands of Euros in indemnities for being fictively “sacked” right before giving them even better jobs. This indemnities money comes very often from the Community funds attributed to the institutes they direct, as with the Costumer Center, or else it is deviated from other Community funds. These “prizes” were not in use before the arrival of the Community funds. Worse than maladministration alone, isn’t this corruption in the use of Community funds? Investment and povertyAlentejo is a wide but sparsely populated country area in the south of the Country. It has always been known as the poorest in the EU. The EU has allotted plenty enough of Community funds for investing on the development of the region. What are the results? None at all! People are still running away from there and development has been null. Successive governments make much ado about their ideas and actions, but they have always been much less than sufficient. They have effectively conceded some tax privileges to some industrial or commercial projects only. They have never done anything similar to a full-scale project or of any other sort for the people themselves, to fix them in the country, as we have seen in other European countries, like in the Romansh speaking region in Switzerland, to name one, an European country even if not part of the EU. Another example was an operation well carried out and succeeded, with a similar help from the EU given to the south of Spain, with a climate that is very like the Alentejo’s. An almost deserted area became a country of orchards. Portugal never backed any successful project for the people. Nothing was ever done to improve agriculture unless subsides to repair wrong doings or weather catastrophes. What has been done is something very similar to what the WMF and alike have been doing in the hungry African countries, distributing food (that often doesn’t even reach the target), not helping them to live by themselves. A part of the Community funds was wrongly spent on inappropriate projects that died in time, the administrative politicians found other ways to hinder the remaining from ever getting there. Is this the way the EU projected to develop the Alentejo region? What was done of the development funds? Where they used the way they were meant? Is this not clear enough corruption and maladministration of the Community funds? Trás-os-Montes is another large, different, but similarly poor region in the north, plagued with identical problems and suffering the same consequences from corruption. No need to repeat them. People keep on running away from both areas, continuously loosing population. Some completely abandoned places are now ghost villages. And this goes on because the European funds meant to help avoiding this fact are either mal administrated, corruptly deviated for other applications producing more votes (today, these regions are almost deserted by electors) or stolen, distributed to politicians, parties and friends, or all together. Investment on educationNo noticeable investment has ever been made on education, thus the results show. No visible investment has ever been made on research, everyone knows. No state investment at all or even backing has been made in technology. No perceptible investment has ever been made on recycling the people and preparing them for the technological future, as occurred in other EU. Everyone connected with these matters, as both (the antagonist) employers and worker unions (like CGTP or UGT) agree and testify on the lack of use of the Community funds, or any other funds, for any of these purposes. The present government recognises all of the above mentioned as true and announces investments, but we better wait and see if this is not something we have already heard, again and again. Investment on prevention and civic education on driving or on preventive radars has been virtually none at all. The police agents themselves state that the government only wants them to extort money from the drivers with fines, not to educate them to prevent the accidents. Yet, police is not meant to educate people. So they go out on fining operations and apply as many fines as they can while the number of accidents remains high. Almost no investment has ever been made on anything assuring progress or granting the future, as the Community funds are meant for. A substantial part of the Community funds was given away for closing lots of factories, as well as other productive places, but no replacement was ever backed up, so the results show. There are some projects on this subject, but almost nothing was done; what has been going on for so long on employment is clear evidence. The present economic holes in the Country and administration finances are the only possible consequences. Investments on research and energy were abandoned and the structures literally dismantled by the political power during the early 1980’s. Some infrastructures aside, many of them wrongly built, we wonder what could have been done of the Community funds. However, the answer to this simple question is quite clear: in addition to what is described on this exposition, the funds were used also for keeping the people numbly happy and get their votes for the political governing parties’ re-elections. After all, all they did were short-term projects that could bring them enough re-election votes. Extremely few long-term projects have been conceived for decades. As the results can’t be appreciated before elections, they have been simply skipped. So, owing to corruption and maladministration of the Community funds, they have brought the country’s economy to where it is now. What more evidence do you need to find out about the mentioned corruption and maladministration of the Community funds? Nevertheless, there are many others like, for instance, the Banco de Portugal – the central bank – in the 18 months from January 2004 to the end of June 2005, spent (invested?) the amazing amount of €1.2 million on cars for the managing staff. If this sort of corruption does not concern the Community funds, where has the money come from, if before the attribution of Community funds to Portugal things like this never happened? How come, OLAF does not find tangible results on the application of the Com Investment on environment and healthIf an investigation is carried out on the residual waters and sewage treatment stations, made possible with the help of the community, one has to come to the obvious conclusion that it was not possible to use the full amount of funds and have the stations working the way they are, many of them spreading pollution all around. You may call this either maladministration or corruption on the use of the Community funds. Or both. The same goes with other forms of pollution, as the air. Being Lisbon in an almost permanently windy geographical area (in opposite to other cities, like Athens, for instance), how can it be one of the most polluted European cities? How would it be if there were no winds? How have the Community funds been used in order to get these results? Are not all these, rational and wise questions? The health services, with almost no prevention (medicines strictly used for prevention are not subsided), are known as the most deficient in Europe to the point of literally killing the citizens owing to many reasons. Nearly all of the reasons originate on people’s mentality on how to deal with the situations, on the human importance given to any individual person’s health and life, on the waiting time before treatment (maybe the longest in the world), and not the least on maladministration. Nonetheless, Portugal is widely known as the European country spending more money for inhabitant on these deficient and inefficient health services, whatever the results might be. The equivalent happens with just about all state provided services or else, maladministration being the common factor patent everywhere. Everyone without exception knows this confirmed truth. Corrupt and inept politicians administrating state services do not care about organising anything properly that will not end before next elections or results cannot be found before and will not generate votes by then. All they care is about their re-election and their own wealth, as well as personal, family and party “bien-être”. Do OLAF and the EU innocently or believe that maladministration does not occur with the Community funds, just because they are community funds, or do they collaborate intentionally? At the light of so many perfectly established facts, this seems to be a very appropriate question that has not been answered yet. Owing to what has been going on for so long and the clearly observable evidence and results, many people in Portugal really believe that Portuguese politicians have been continuously bribing OLAF staff with corruption money and influence, therefore decaying the faith on, and the whole idea of the EU. This question seems to me too serious to be omitted. Knowing and having worked with many Europeans as well as many people from other continents than most Portuguese have and other nationals do, I cannot share this opinion. But still, it is a fact that many believe. Enlightening consequencesToday, 99% of the problems in Portugal are direct results of these and analogous facts. An inoperative and extremely bureaucratic administration fomenting corruption, the Social Security globally in process of destruction (not comparable with the recent operated reductions in other countries), poor general education, an ever growing illiteracy, poverty and a bad distribution of money, lack of the most elementary civic feelings and behaviour, very high pollution levels. Environment norms are not implanted if not enforced by the EU in extremis. A rising crime, a parody of Justice to the point of magistrates having a workers union and going on strike (has happened, and more strikes are now announced again!), more people in prison today without trial and for longer time than when of the dictatorship. The killing on the roads, the killing of sick or accident injured people simultaneously for the delayed arrival of the ambulances, the lack of many kinds of urgent help followed by deaths at the hospitals for lack of medical care, and so on. Most hospitals do not have a landing ground for helicopters (so easy and cheap to build); they have to land in a sometimes far away airport; then the hospitals sends an ambulance to pick up the patient at the airport. Is there anyone – apart from the Portuguese politicians – daring to say this is not a third world country? Many third world countries are much better off. If you investigate and really wish to know how Justice works, apart from the general opinion you can have some elucidative explanations from an eminent and well-known professor of sociology, Mr. António Barreto, who also happens to be acquainted to the practice of Justice in other European countries. Of course the politicians deny this vehemently, because the fault is strictly theirs as well as from most journalists. Both are improving racism, no matter what they may say. Years ago, both started calling black Africans as Negroes. This word means everything without further explanation. In addition, all governments have skipped the fact that crime comes from the poorest society distressed with the ignored use of social sciences. These abandoned poor and distressed groups are presently formed mainly by excluded poor Africans – but unfortunately not only. All governments skip this fact because they are responsible for the growing number of indigents: the politicians with their corruption and maladministration of the Community funds, the consenting journalists by covering them up, being traitors to their professional vocation. Not all journalists, of course, a few exceptions try to honour their profession informing the people, but none of those is in the condition of being widely read, heard or seen like on television, and many of those who speak up are shut up. There are many ways of doing it in apparently innocent ways. Television news and programs are generally based on big, often lying scoops like the Carcavelos beach (close to Lisbon) on last 6th July that went on TV news throughout Europe. To remedy (not to solve) the small crimes situation owing primarily to poverty and its related consequences, politicians make fake promises, announcements and ads about sending more police agents onto the streets. None of them tell the people that in civilized countries police is not found on the streets unless on special justified occasions. Journalists follow suite. This is a clear evidence of how both groups despise the public minds. Especially concerned are the major enterprises in the country. If you ask their presidents and administrators, they will give you further reasons for starting an inquiry. They will say the schools are teaching the wrongly needed courses, are not preparing people as needed, and those with the needed courses are not coming out of school properly prepared. There is no coordination between teaching and the little left industry. They will also tell many facts about other problems they experience owing to maladministration. Belmiro de Azevedo, president of SONAE, has a good general idea on the widely spread corruption with the use of Community funds and a very precise description of its maladministration with plenty of facts and detailed reasons to back up his words. Mr. Azevedo does not shut up or cover the government corrupt deeds, but the sound of his claiming voice has been covered up with the noise from corrupt politicians and journalists alike. Precisely the same goes for Carvalho da Silva, head of the CGTP workers union. They share most opinions and points of view on many situations even if they are in opposite fields, what must mean some thing. The later really knows plenty of general and detailed issues about the maladministration and corruption in the use of the Community funds in Portugal, much more than I expected before hearing his explanations. Well kept secrets by serious peopleNow, knowing to where these policies led this country (as per the general world knowledge), do you innocently believe there was not an almost permanent fraud and corruption in the use of Community funds? Does your administrative staff too, get jobs by appointment or recommendation from a corrupt politician and have nothing else to do but let it be the way it is? Does it already know that when the party at government changes with next elections, it will be replaced with someone belonging to the new governing party, who will get the job just the same way it did? Just like it happens here? Unthinkable; things that style do not happen in Europe today, except in Portugal! The reason why they do this, so they say, is because they want to place people they can trust on those (still) over 2000 jobs. With 2000 secret keepers – if not for anything else – doesn’t this seem that they must have a bit too many secrets to hide? Sure, they want to hide their highly corrupt acts from the Nation as well as from the EU, beside the more than obvious reason for keeping higher paid positions for themselves, not for qualified people obtaining them by public applications and contests in a democratic and clear manner. Don’t these facts show you the high degree of corruption and a determined will on hiding it? Can you really believe these extremely corrupt people will be able to, and have the seriousness of dealing with large amounts of Community funds in their corrupt rapacious hands in a correct way just because they are Community funds? Who is the innocent to believe this? The error started at the beginning: Portugal should never have been admitted to the EU before being a democracy and behaving like one. I am perfectly aware that the two following paragraphs do not concern OLAF directly. Nonetheless, it is a revelation on the behaviour on how funds are dealt by most Portuguese politicians. They are facts from real life and you may take your own deduction or make up your own idea. The facts are not generally known, secret keepers do their jobs. However, the secrets are so many that some things come out from time to time. An evident example of corruption and waste of funds (either communitarian or not) is the case of the Caixa Geral de Depósitos administrative body. This is a state bank, the largest and most important commercial bank in the country, not the central bank, just one of the banks belonging to the state. Every time the governing party changes (and this happens far more often than in any European country), the administrative body is replaced with politicians belonging to the new party in government. They are not actually a part of the governmental administration, but merely taken as if they were. The political parties incorporated this directorial body in the over 2000 previously mentioned government administrative jobs. These jobs are not attributed just as rewards for being party militants. There are government-approved rules ascribing enormously large amounts of money to those politicians – in purely commercial administrative jobs – for when they are replaced when of those over 2000 government jobs changes. These large amounts of money are taken as indemnities and compensations. At the beginning of the last month of August three administrators of the mentioned bank where replaced. They received about 2.5 million euros, and as usually, when their party comes back to government, they will get new jobs with the same conditions when departing time comes again. The total number of administrators in this bank used to be fourteen, presently reduced to eleven. It won’t be difficult to imagine how much the replacement of the whole administrative body, either eleven or fourteen, costs the Nation each time the political party changes. The same policy applies to Banco de Portugal, the central bank, as well as to many other positions literally stolen by the corrupt political parties of the Country. In such a poor country with over 25% of the people living below poverty level, and with a well known huge deficit, not being able to reverse the situation, don’t you believe this to be a hard core corruption crime? What on earth can make you believe they are dealing with the Community funds in a different fashion? The funds are certainly not the same, but they are definitely in the same hands. To direct Galp (gas and petrol) – the biggest enterprise in the country and one of those nearly completely privatized in recent years – the present government appointed a lawyer, a political party militant and pal, who has been a mayor for many years and has never had any connection with that sort of business. This is just another top job that instead of being filled by contest by a competent applicant was offered as a prize for a political chum. Everyone in the country was partly astonished, not completely astonished because cases of this sort are common in Portugal. Santa Casa da Misericórdia is a welfare organisation with a widely spread national coverage for helping poor people, founded over five centuries ago. In a country where 25% of the citizens live under poverty levels, one can realize how desperately needed it is. Santa Casa gets the required funds from lotteries and games after paying the State its part of taxes, as it happens in every country with similar events. Because football results also play a part in the games, a previous government determined that in a country with so many poor people, a part of the money for the poor should be channelled to the football clubs. So the poor got stolen by football clubs with the approval of corrupt politicians. This decision became country widely known as the “Totonegócio” [meaning Toto-business]. As all major political parties agreed, this scandalous situation has been maintained by the following governments, and is still in use. When we know about the corrupt connections between some politicians, mayors and football clubs, we can easily understand why things like this happen. In fact, among many other procedures, politicians support football clubs in order to get elected or re-elected. Every citizen knows all about this corrupt situation, but no one moves a finger to change it; this is a typical and most expressive Portuguese behaviour. Politicians say they keep their over 2000 administrative jobs for themselves because they need some jobs populated with people they trust, so they also took over the administrative positions of Santa Casa da Misericórdia and consequently got their hands on its money, the money to help the poor. They did not place any known apt sociologist, or else, able to help the poor. The previous government party gave the number one job to a politician who has already been replaced and received an indemnity, as mentioned above, and is now running for the Lisbon Town Hall, too! This one did the following. Short term help money and other urgency punctual subsides were halved or further reduced. Some other subsides, as for medicines for illnesses, including lethal diseases, were cancelled. We can see the three true reasons why politicians claim the need to keep their over 2000 administrative jobs for themselves: first, the parasites need well paid jobs; second, they want to put their dirty hands on people’s money; third, they need secret keepers in order to hide their corrupt acts. When the described indemnities apply to directors of any Community funded organisation, the Community funds are also used according to the same formula. Is this procedure not obvious? Therefore, what makes OLAF innocently believe that such dirty and corrupt people on almost everything will treat the Community funds differently? Is that just because they are Community funds!? Have I heard someone laughing at these questions? More funds wanted!In despite of all these facts, politicians keep asking the EU for more funds to dilapidate. True, the country really needs them badly, but solely because almost all received funds to date have been systematically misused, wrongly administrated and worse, shared among “politicians & fiends”. Portugal is a peculiar single case in the EU: 20 years after entrance, is still depending on the same sort of funds! This cannot be forgotten. Something that can’t be missed when we appreciate the works of past governments is the highways. They are there and jump at our eyes, but when we have a closer look (driving), we find out how badly they were built. Then we understand why so many people are killed by their builders when driving on them. They are traps. This is just a single example of the best things done with the Community funds: wrongly built, wrongly administrated funds. To read just a few opinions what the world knows about this situation please check the bracketed links that also include the behaviour of the people of the most uncivilised European country [1 2 3 4 5 6]. Some have started (only a few years ago) speaking out about the road resulting slaughter from wrongly and badly built and signalled roads, but their voices are weak and promptly muffled. Almost everything is either corruption or maladministration, or both together. All economists keep saying the deficit will stay for as long as fast modernization will not take place. How do you imagine the politicians deal with the mentioned deficit after having spoiled the funds? Why should the Community go on sending more funds to a country where they are useless for everyone except for the politicians? No need, they are useless, sometimes even when for very specific purposes. Is there anyone able to make accounts – even a simple bookkeeper –capable to analyse how the Community funds have been used and to find out what brought the Country to the present deficit situation? I cannot understand why the EU was so careless, has not operated a proper investigation or run some kind of accompaniment on how the funds were used, right on the spot, so having avoided those problems. The road to progress and TV pubEverything related to communications, one of the basic corner stones for development has an uncontrolled and unreachable price for the general people, the poorest in the EU. The service providers pay their staff miserable wages and establish the highest EU fare levels for their services. Local phone calls are about 65% over the most expensive in EU countries, Internet DSL connections prices are about 5 (five) times those practiced in Germany! They do this with the approval of corrupt governments telling the people they are improving right prices and development. There are about 60 cable TV channels, of course (with fares that go up many folds those in the EU), but not channels of TV programs from other countries for their own national public, enabling the Portuguese people to get informed about what goes on there. They are not channels broadcasting for their national audiences, but only those propaganda-type “export TV” programs, so the Portuguese do not get directly informed on what goes on in other countries. The Portuguese journalists don’t mention anything about, they just pass pasteurized information, the way they want, no choice. This is so obvious that one can ask if this cover up is not purposely meant to protect the corrupt politicians. Petrol prices are the highest in the EU, not only for the taxes, but also for the prices themselves. Cars are the highest priced in the EU, mostly because of taxes. How does it come to be like this with communications and carburant (but not only, of course)? Gas and electrical power, not communications commodities, are both vital for development. Electrical power general costs have attained up to about 4 (four) times those in France! Natural gas, when introduced in Europe came to improve many things and lower energy prices, after correct information was passed to the peoples of all countries. When it finally arrived in Portugal, some twenty years after the other western European countries, there was a heavy publicity everywhere, including on TV. Later, the prices came up showing an enormous increase… About thirty years ago there was a studying and research plan on different energies. However, at approximately the same time Portugal started looking for joining the EU, the leadership of the traditional energy suppliers was handled to politicians. Being their interest to maintain high prices for filling up their pockets, and behaving the governing politicians as if the Community funds would dispense the research, all programs were progressively dismantled. They were all gone until some time ago, and now days when something is restarted it is presented by the politicians as something really new that we owe exclusively to their capacity and generosity! After all, this does not guarantee votes for the next election, either. Look deep into the problems and you will find clear answers. At the top of most of the larger corporations, like Galp, EDP or Telecom, are always well known politicians whom the governments do not wish to bother and give free way to exploit the people and keep them backward. They determine European level prices and pay their workers miserable wages. Wouldn’t you call this hard corruption too? The origin of this corruption started right after the time that almost everything was nationalised. Afterward, the directions of all nationalisations were given to incompetent and greedy politicians. From here on it could only get worse. Most nationalisations have been privatised, but still run by politicians, just the same as before. The politicians and familiars running these large concerns get very often falsely “sacked”, as mentioned above (under Governmental administration and institutions), in order to receive huge indemnities and get similar jobs on similar large corporations, with similar conditions. Easy to get rich for some democrats in Portugal. How can a country develop itself in these conditions? Have the Community funds been given away to Portugal for this? Is it for all these reasons and more that Portugal receives a share of the Community funds, to help backing up corruption and maladministration? At the very least, this is what the funds have been used for up to now. What were the Community funds for?Commercial competition does not work like it does in any other European country. False third world publicity induce third world people on buying rubbish as good, everything sells if advertised on TV. Lots of government institutions were created in order to give opportunities for politicians occupying unnecessary jobs to earn their unjustified parasitic high salaries and forge high retirement pensions with very few years of contribution, which they can receive even 20 years before reaching the retirement age, as well as with the above mentioned “sacked” method. This, together with other similar “projects” is a most infamous proceeding. There are governmental institutions for almost everything, including overseeing commercial competition and publicity, but they do not work because they are headed not by competent people, but because their directors are part of those over 2000 incompetent political parasites placed there by the governing parties, because they trust them politically, so they say. The governments use the people’s money and television to advertise their lies, just as they did with natural gas. Am I mixing things up? No, the administrator of the gas supplier, who exacts the money from the people, was an important minister of the then government. Underdeveloped and backward people are easy pray of advertisers – this is a well known fact. There are many more ads on Portuguese TV then in other European countries’. When we compare their content, we find first some are translations of the usual general ads we can see in most European countries, sometimes world wide; many others are absolutely typical of underdeveloped and backward countries, either by content or by presentation. As usually, the useless journalists do not inform the people covering up the reasons why the corrupt governments do not instruct the public, one of them being because if the people became more educated and well informed, this would drop a part of the money their employers (television broadcasters) receive from this source. The other reason is that the money for the other winners with the situation are often those described on the preceding paragraph. At first look, this may not seem of any concern for OLAF, but this is just one of the ways of maladministration and corruption on the governments’ use of the Community funds to develop the country. Or else, what were the funds for? Were they meant to move the Country backwards, as the facts illustrate, the gap between Portugal and the other EU countries always widening since starting receiving the Community funds? More poor with an ever wider gap between poor and rich, more people unable to manage their lives, more illiterate, corruption and underdeveloped world feelings not recognised but widely accepted as a way of life and a correct behaviour. No matter the cover up, all proportions taken, Portugal is now definitely much more behind other countries than what it was before adhering to the EU. Before adhering to the EU Portugal was about 20 years behind, while two years ago, according to the EU statistics was over 50 years behind. This is the sort of democracy promoted by corruption and maladministration of the Community funds, because the EU overlooks and approves as is. Under the circumstances, were we not much better off without the Community funds? Doesn’t OLAF share some responsibility on the way those funds were used, when this means maladministration and corruption on their use, even explicit misappropriation? Please note, the present prime minister recognises all the basic themes included in my exposition in what regards the permanent lack of any investment for so many years. His recognition defines the undeniable existence of maladministration of the Community funds as sure and certain. He seems to be trying to make up, investing on areas for which we know the Community funds were meant. However, how can he do it with the Community funds already dilapidated and no other funds available? It looks very much like a “Mission Impossible”. Tough he does not say there was corruption on the handling of the Community funds, how can his own words be interpreted otherwise or have any other meaning when faced with the registered facts? It is obvious that those not applied Community funds could not have volatilised by themselves alone. Hardcore and
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