While presenting himself as the vanguard of the rule of law, Guy Verhofstadt increases his own wealth in a legally and morally objectionable, corrupt manner. The liberal member of the European Parliament renovated his luxury house with public money, he lobbies for oligarchs and his offshore interests have also come to light.
Guy Verhofstadt, a liberal Belgian member of the European Parliament who regularly criticizes our country, partially renovated his imposing 17th-century luxury property with public funds, it was said in the M1 Unió 27 program.
Although the Belgian politician earns more than five million forints per month for his work in the EP, half of the renovation of his luxury house in the historic district of Ghent was paid for by the local government, the province and the Flemish government, so it cost the taxpayers almost 135 million forints. the renovation.
István Pócza, the program manager of the Lajos Batthyány Foundation, told M1 that Verhofstadt had on numerous occasions vehemently criticized other countries - including our country - for what he believed to be a lack of the rule of law and democracy, but now he was confronted with the fact that, indeed, even on his own doorstep you should sweep him because he has questionable activities in his background.
However, the aforementioned property renovation is only the latest scandal for the former Belgian minister,
from the Paradise documents made public in 2017, it was also revealed that Verhofstadt was also a board member of a shipping company, for which he received sixty thousand euros, roughly HUF 24 million, annually. In addition, it was an offshore company, that is, a company that is established specifically for the purpose of tax avoidance. The case became a huge scandal in Belgium.
The politician therefore based his activities on avoiding the taxation of European countries from an economic point of view. And his goal is probably to make as much personal profit as possible - István Pócza pointed out.
Attila Kovács, the project manager of the Center for Fundamental Rights, recalled to M1 that since the former Belgian prime minister became a member of the European Parliament, he seized every opportunity to criticize Hungary, the Hungarian government, and Hungarian politicians who stand up for his national interests.
Now, however, the nail is out of the bag, because while Hungary is being accused of baseless corruption, he himself is increasing his personal wealth in a corrupt and legally objectionable way.
According to Transparency's 2018 report, he earned between 920,000 and 1.4 million euros in that year alone, which significantly exceeded the 13,000 euros monthly salary of his representatives in Brussels and Strasbourg.
A 2021 report listed him as one of the five highest-paid politicians in the European Parliament.
While he regularly attacks our country, Verhofstadt is very lenient with his allies. When Katalin Cseh's case broke out, for example, she did not speak out despite the fact that the family company of the Hungarian representative allegedly won billions of HUF in EU money under questionable circumstances.
Verhofstadt also lobbies for oligarchs. Between 2014 and 2019, he received about one and a half million euros for his position on the management board of the fund management company Sofina, and he even declares a conflict of interest that he indirectly strengthened Sofina's market positions and acquisition of property when, during the Greek crisis, he advocated the privatization of the Thessaloniki waterworks within the framework of the EU-Athens loan agreement. The case never had a more serious consequence in the union.
