I don’t dispute that we can dig up documents after the fact. That’s not the same as being transparent by design - that’s damage control.

The Ombudsman’s findings themselves show maladministration, secretive lobbying, and conflicts of interest. That’s not a healthy system keeping itself in check; that’s outsiders catching it after the harm is done.

Saying ‘it’s only the Commission’ is like saying ‘it’s only the engine’ when your car catches fire. The structure allows it, the culture rewards it, and the safeguards are paper-thin if not non-existent.

If the EU really is ‘the least corrupt in history,’ then why are Palantir and Thorn shaping surveillance laws (terrorism dressed as such) in back rooms while the public only finds out years later - and law enforcement looks away? That’s not just a bad apple problem - that’s systemic rot.