After 2 days I got bored of Mumbai so I caught a flight to Bangalore to visit my friend Habeeb, my future partner in Indo-European projects.
This is not the topic I want to discuss, however. I was on my way to Bangalore and received an email invitation to a conference on cross-border philanthropy led by Jacques Santer . Does the name of the President of the European Commission who quit after allegations of financial fiddling in ’99 ring a bell?
In Italian there is a saying: you don’t through away any part of the pig. This can be extended to all Italian society with every respect to the pig.
Politicians don’t retire until they die. The same goes for criminals and celebrities. You still hear of the TV singers whom my father loved in his teens.
If this was an epidemic we would notice it quickly spreading across Europe if not the world. Santer is just the tip of the iceberg – it’s so inappropriate that some with his trackrecord finds a job in the third sector and leads a conference in which transparency and accountability are crucial. What’s even worse is that the conference is supported by the EC and a Vive President of the EC is speaking too.
You might think this is normal in Brusselsland. Not true. Look how Bill and Al have recycled themselves so successfully in third sector, becoming stars of fundraising!
In Italy politicians start their own Foundations. In Russia Corporations do it so they can score highly in their CSR, which funds their own projects.
It’s great to see how the third sector is growing. I joined at the time because it was the new fronteer . Now it is fast becoming a Far West where everybody can find a new career and make a fortune. It’s time to raise the bar of good governance and to set international standards so people like Mr Santer will look somewhere else for his adventures.
