Regarding the question on transparency on communication with Giotto: I have been in touch with him on multiple Refs over the past half year or so. We also met in person during Polkadot Decoded where I had the opportunity to have a long and very interesting chat on a wide range of topics regarding Polkadot and OpenGov. I do find myself agreeing with many of his positions and respect his vision for taking the ecosystem forward. After he voted for my HA application, I also thanked him for it. For the record I would like to state here that I have not been voting under his influence or received any form of bribery.
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I’ve already responded across several channels, but I wanted to address it here as well for clarity, especially since the question was raised here first.
First and foremost, I want to clarify that I did NOT ask Giotto to vote for me. Even without his vote, I would have been elected as Head Ambassador due to the overwhelming support I received from the community. I’ve only spoken to Giotto once, during Decoded. Additionally, since I have no other proposals online, Giotto has not voted for me in any other capacity.
I am firmly opposed to any form of bribery, and I believe that anyone who knows me well can attest to that.
Mario S
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Even without his vote, I would have been elected as Head Ambassador due to the overwhelming support I received from the community
The so-called “massive support” from the community actually rests on just three addresses!
But thank you for your transparency !
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I talked to Giotto a bit before and during my election. Basically trying to understand what his goal was and what vision (or lack of) he had for Polkadot.
And at some point I said “I’d make a great ambassador” and he said “OK, I’ll vote for you”.
That was it.
In the end it didn’t really matter as i got 98% of support with or without his vote.
I know I was not. I’m not going to risk extending this to the full set of HA.
I’ve never received any support, funding or privileges from anyone or anything since I’ve been involved in this ecosystem. The idea of working for something bigger than myself that could change humanity is enough for me.
And I’m incorruptible…
You won’t find the shadow of a doubt of the beginning of anything related to bribery, to the point that I even refuse any form of commission when I’m onboarding people on Polkadot. I only do this because I believe it’s for the greater good.
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Many thanks to all HA who have answered transparency questions @Lucy @replghost @Abdulbee @Max @LinkedCar @DonDiegoSanchez, Cris (on Discord) and @bekka, I have no doubts other ones will answer in the next day.
As most may have understood, the questions were not intended to question the legitimacy of each HA election, but to collect transparency statement regarding relations with the instigator of the current program, who is known to be “vote trading” (he is not hiding it, this is not a revelation here).
I am glad to see most HA don’t seem to have been vote trading with this person, because this would represent in community’s opinion a betrayal of their representation of the Polkadot ecosystem through the role of ambassador.
I hope we can see corruption resilience as a written rule of the ambassador program in the future, vote trading and influence traffic can in my opinion (and in the opinion of all community members I know) not be tolerated in any way for the legitimacy of representation of the ambassador role.
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When Giotto went “Demolish the Ambassador Program”, I inititated a conversation with him and asked for a direct call with the ex-HA team. We didn’t talk before. Since I discussed with him a few times, but he never tried any kind of bribery, vote-trade or any other illicit behaviour with me. Honestly, I find him a person who wants to do something good. Of course he has his own ways like everyone.
He is a whale, many people are unhappy about it because he has the power to vote for or against anything basically. But probably the solution is to bring in more whales to the table, rather than trolling the one that decided to participate very actively.
The rules are simple, if you have a lot of DOT, you have big voting power. Simple as it is, I think everyone needs to understand and accept it. This is the main rule of the game. Want to improve it? Join those who are working hard on it without drama.
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Dear Polkadot friends,
As I present this individual report, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to each of you. Over the past 2 months, I’ve had the privilege of meeting various ambitious individuals, and within our Ambassador Collective, I’ve witnessed the passion and dedication of those truly committed to our community. I can genuinely say that I was one of them.
Many considered my decision to step into the role of Head Ambassador stupid—“you can only lose.” But I was determined to make a difference, and that’s why I took this leap.
I understood that every move I made would be scrutinized under a magnifying glass, and not everyone would agree with me. Yet, my passion for driving change and putting the community first has always been at the forefront of my actions. Throughout this journey, I’ve remained true to myself.
Currently I find myself reflecting on the structure of the Head Ambassadors and questioning whether I still see a future in it, especially after last week’s events. Time will tell…
I extend my sincere thanks to everyone who voiced their support and also to those who challenged me to do better. Your feedback has been heard, and I will certainly take it into account.
Let’s remember: life’s too short to take ourselves too seriously. Keep your heads up, your spirits high, and your memes even higher! Together, we can turn this drama !
Mario Schraepen
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