When former European Parliament vice-president Eva Kaili, 44, was arrested on December 9 over a corruption scandal involving Qatar and Morocco, the first person to passionately defend her was her sister, Mantalena Kaili.
Mantalena said she couldn’t believe the allegations given her sister’s “morals and personality”. In an interview with Greek tabloid Proto Thema, she said she would do anything for her sister. Mantalena sees Eva as the victim of an intrigue. “Just being there is boring,” she says. In any case, she is ready to testify in favor of her sister in Brussels.
Together against winds and tides
Eva and Mantalena Kaili have always been considered inseparable siblings. According to testimonies from people close to them, they have “weathered through thick and thin together” since their childhood. Plus, Mantalena follows Eva every step of the way. According to Greek media, they have also been spotted on “epic shopping sprees” in Athens. This may not come as a surprise. But the relationship between the two women seems to go beyond an intimate sibling relationship, as now reported by “Politico”.
While Eva Kaili had a stellar career in the European Parliament after moving in in 2014, Mantalena Kaili founded an all-purpose organization – the Made Group – whose activities often overlapped suspiciously with her sister’s political agenda. The Made Group or individual offshoots of the organization have repeatedly appeared in the background of Eva Kaili’s activities in Brussels.
The organization of Mantalena always at your fingertips
A prime example of how Mantalena’s Made Group activities align with Eva Kaili’s political interests is in the area of science and technology. Just when Eva Kaili was turning her attention to topics like artificial intelligence and blockchain in the European Parliament, Mantalena Kaili’s Made group founded a “non-profit initiative” called ELONtech in 2018, which – what a surprise – also focused on this topic.
Eva Kaili’s efforts as the European Parliament’s blockchain spearhead culminated in a European Parliament decision on blockchain technology in October 2018. The European Parliament’s body on the future of science and of Technology (STOA), chaired by Eva Kaili, opened an artificial intelligence center in December 2019.
Mantalena Managing Director, Eva Consultant
Significant logistical support: ELONtech with Mantalena Kaili as general manager at the top. However, both Kaili sisters were actively involved in ELONtech. As mentioned, Mantalena acted as general manager, Eva as a consultant, who also gave lectures from time to time.
In addition, one of ELONtech’s editors, Dimitris Tzanidakis, is also listed as an assistant to Eva Kaili on the European Parliament website, while ELONtech’s chief legal adviser, Alexandros Spyridonos, is on the same list of parliamentary assistants as a service provider. Of course: Mantalena today denies that the Made Group or ELONtech are involved with the European Parliament for their own financial benefit.
This article was first published on express.at
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