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Sleaze has gone. But the green shoots of possible new sleaze may be sprouting. Why three Tory MPs embarked on a trip to Equatorial Guinea in a fearless search for facts is a mystery. A journalist Ian Birell from the Observer went along to report this unwise jaunt. He notes that the three MPs had not bothered to inform themselves that their hosts were among the world’s most corrupt governments. Nadine gushed about the- great privilege of being the first parliamentray delegation to visit the county. No-one else had been foolish enough to accept an invitation. She would have been less thrilled is she had read beforehand that the President seized power from his uncle in 1979. He was a sorcerer who collected human skulls. A third of the population fled the country. President Obiang followed his uncle and created a one party brutal state. He is now lauded on state radio as a god in ‘permanent contact with the Almighty’ who ‘can decide to kill without having to go to hell.’ While, I am sure that the three Tory MPs did not act improperly in any way their behaviour was very odd. The questions they asked would have been sensible for a free democracy. They were laughingly meaningless in a violent police state. One of the MPs was offered £20,000 to organise a similar delegation of MPs for a second visit, the reporter claims. Nadine started to smell a rat when she noticed that a handbag used by one of the local MPs was a Hermes – worth about £15,000. Equatorial Guinea is overflowing with super-rich oil revenues. They have new roads, mansions and hospitals. All are out of bounds to their abused citizens. I am sure that none of the three MPs will try to promote the interests of this country in the Commons and no future delegation will visit. But there is a trend for all-Party Commons groups to become mouthpieces for lobbying. The odious regime of Azerbaijan is being promoted by the Chair of the Azerbaijan Group. A debate was arranged and questions were asked that promoted the advantages of trade with the country. Now Commons rules force the registration of not only interests but also money received. These recorded by Mark Field are eye-popping. The hourly rate is good. |
Mark Field Part of current Declaration of Interests.
Member of the Advisory Board of The European Azerbaijan Society, advising on cultural, economic, diplomatic and political issues in the South Caucasus region. (£5,001-£10,000)
* Payment of £1,000 gross for work done in April/May 2011. Hours: 6 hrs. (Registered 1 June 2011)
Nadine ran the great privilege of being the first delegation to visit parliamentray County.
Posted by: שיווק באינטרנט | November 19, 2011 at 11:12 AM