The European Anti-Fraud Office, or by its French
abbreviation OLAF, released its annual report, which indicates that Hungary has
the most financial irregularities of any EU member state this year. OLAF is
certified and tasked with investigating fraud and corruption with the EU budget
within the European constitution and is also responsible for creating
anti-fraud legislation and policies.
Between for years of 2015 to 2019, OLAF carried out 235
investigations in total. These investigations' purpose was to look into the
misuse of European Structural and Investment Funds with the recommendation that
the European Commission recovers 0.36 percent of the total funding due to
irregularities.
After the investigation, it was concluded that Hungary was
the worst country in financial irregularities. The country experienced 43
probes, and the recovery rate was way higher than the rest of the members – up
to almost 4 percent. To compare this number, the second-highest recommended
recovery rate was 0.53 by Slovakia. Hungary was 400 percent above the
recommended recovery rate.
Hungary commented on the situation by blaming the policies
initiated by the preceding socialist government, such as the Metro 4 project in
Budapest, which has stirred up controversy amid the allegations of corruption.
Infographic by: statista
