There is a lot, an awful lot of corruption in Belgium, and thousands of cases "are on hold" due to the lack of timely investigation capabilities, said former Belgian criminal judge Michel Cleese, who became internationally known for his investigation into the "Catargate" case, in an interview with a local media outlet, BTA reported.
Corruption is easy to detect, the cases have been filed, they just need to be examined, he added. According to him, this is becoming increasingly difficult due to the reduction in the number of investigating police officers.
According to Cleese, the solution lies in establishing a financial prosecutor's office, similar to the service in France, whose work led to the charges against former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. According to him, so far in Belgium, only 5-6 percent of cases are moving forward, and much data from the Anti-Money Laundering Office is not used in a timely manner, as evidenced by the recently launched investigation into former Belgian European Commissioner Didier Reynders.
Clez claims that if more corruption and financial fraud cases reach court, the budget would certainly gain "hundreds of millions of euros". The former judge, who is now in the ranks of an opposition party from the political center, blames the ruling coalition parties, especially the right-wing parties, for the lack of necessary action.