Qatargate, the entrepreneur from South Africa who gave Panzeri 250 thousand euros – Corriere.it

Della Fight impunity, an NGO led by former MEP Antonio Panzeri among the protagonists of the Belgian investigation into alleged bribes in favor of EU parliamentarians, emerges a loan of 250 thousand euros, the largest received, from an entrepreneur, doctor, “philanthropist” » and South African publisher. We are talking about Iqbal Survé, XX years old: with his Sekunjalo development foundation (Sdf) based in Johannesburg in 2020 he supported the activities of the NGO. According to what was declared by Survé himself, it would have been the activities of the Fight impunity that pushed him: to fight against the trafficking of human beings, the abuses of prisoners and in favor of the restoration of peace and justice in the world. As reported by the newspaper The truthSurvé is a controversial man at home, due to his casual use of public funds and pension funds and his links with the leaders of the ANC (African national congress) once owned by Nelson Mandela (of whom Survé claims to have been a friend and personal doctor) . The businessman allegedly met Panzeri’s NGO in Davos, Switzerland, during a World Economic Forum, which subsequently led to Fight Impunity’s request for funding.

Tie me up with Doha

It is in an opinion of the independent EU ethics committee, dated December 2020, that the financing of the SDF is disclosed, at the same time as the start of the paid collaboration of the former European commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos with the NGO. Survé, then interviewed by the South African newspaper Daily Maverick, said he could not comment on having been the main supporter of Panzeri’s activities. The latter is accused of conspiracy, corruption and money laundering. His arrest on 9 December last, together with that of seven other people including his wife, daughter and the vice president of the EU Parliament Eva Kaili, sees as the main accusation hypothesis having acted as a collector of bribes paid by Morocco and Qatar with the aim of improving its reputation as a state through parliamentary initiatives. And it is precisely Qatar that appears to have ties to Survé’s SDF. The foundation, in fact, intervenes above all in South Africa and other African countries, but also in the Gulf areas, as was reported in an article in the Jerusalem Post. For example, the purchase in 2013 of the South African publishing group Independent Media Group, for 200 million dollars, is indicated as an operation permitted with Qatari funds, even if Survé has denied this.