91998E3617

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3617/98

by Nelly Maes (ARE) to the Commission

(3 December 1998)

Subject: Degree of responsibility borne by the former Director of ECHO in the ECHO affair

In its answer dated 11 September 1998 to the question raised in Mr Fabra Vallés initial working document (PE 226.913) on the measures taken by the Commission in response to Special Report No 2/97 and the ECHO affair, the Commission indicated that only one official, who had now been suspended, was suspected of involvement.

Will the Commission kindly explain to me how it can continue to maintain that the then Director of ECHO was not aware of the existence of a number of staff recruited irregularly (i.e. in a manner other than that laid down in the Staff Regulations), given that, in a note (Sgz/mg D(94) 192) dated 18 February 1994, the Private Office of Commissioner Marín stated that there were 12 people on the ECHO staff who had been irregularly recruited and charged to operating appropriations and another four recruited and charged to the "Studies" budget line. In that note, the Director of ECHO concerned estimated the percentage of "submarines" on the ECHO staff at between 3 % and 15 %.