FORMER EU Commissioner Gunter Verheugen has come under the spotlight, with Cypriot MEPs crying foul over his new role as adviser to the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges.
The European Commission gave Verheugen the go-ahead to take on a number of advisory positions in the private sector after spending ten years as German commissioner, first for enlargement (1999-2004) and then enterprise until 2009.
The German requested and received authorisation to work as political adviser to a German association of savings and cooperative banks, adviser and vice-chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland, member of the international advisory board of Fleishman Hillard International Communications, a global public-affairs company, and adviser to the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey.
DIKO MEP Antigone Papadopoulou described European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso’s decision as “provocative”. She said it was no surprise that Verheugen “failed in the past to keep a neutral stance required by his position, but instead publicly expressed Turkish-friendly positions and indicated his strong support for the Annan plan, rejected by the overwhelming majority of Cypriot Hellenism”.
The Euro-deputy questioned whether there was any conflict of interest in a former enlargement commissioner being employed by an organisation of a candidate country.
EDEK’s MEP in Brussels Kyriacos Mavronicolaos also waded into the debate saying the appointment raises questions so soon after his employment at the Commisison. He called on the government to seek explanations from the EU body.
Verheugen is no stranger to Cyprus, having steered it to accession in 2004. However, the affair ended on a sour note when then President Tassos Papadopoulos called on the people to reject the UN-sponsored Annan Plan in April 2004, just days before EU accession.
The German commissioner stood before the European Parliament that same month, saying he felt cheated by the Greek Cypriot leadership, insinuating that a deal had been struck to get Cyprus in the EU on condition that the government supports any reunification plan. Papadopoulos denied such a deal had ever been made.
According to the EuropeanVoice.com, the decision was also criticised by a left-wing MEP and pro-transparency campaigners. The online news site quoted Olivier Hoedeman of Corporate Europe Observatory saying the Commission’s decision was no surprise since it had a “narrow definition of conflict of interest”.
He called for longer periods between former commissioners resigning and taking up new posts to ensure they were less able to exert influence over former staff.
