Can a minister pretend she is unaware of what is going on inside her office? Barely twenty-four hours after examining several key figures in the file, including journalist Mohamed Safawi and former governor Christian Gravel, Marlene Schiappa, former Minister Delegate for Citizenship, had great difficulty answering questions from senators. Marian Fund Investigation Commission. “ So you don’t know anything? »asked Rapporteur (LR) Jean-François Huson, after three hours of a grueling hearing during which the minister showed an injury that particularly upset the senators.
The commission sought to understand the conditions for allocating the subsidies granted by this fund, amounting to 2.5 million euros, which were launched in April 2021, a few months after the assassination of Samuel Paty. This ambitious project was created with a great deal of government connections, claiming to develop and support, through associations, “counter speech” The state against radical Islam. But since in the spring the press published elements questioning the sincerity of the grant allocation process, several proceedings have been opened: a judicial component of an investigation opened by the National Prosecutor’s Office (PNF) and last A more political element, with the commission of inquiry, responsible for shedding light on the role played by Marlene Schiappa.
sequel after announcement
In early June, the publication of a report by the Inspectorate General of Administration (IGA) also led to the resignation of Governor Christian Gravel, in charge of the Ministerial Committee for the Prevention of Delinquency and Extremism (CIPDR), the organization in charge of the Marian Fund. The process of selecting grant recipient organizations ‘It was neither transparent nor fair’indicated IGA.
Muhammad Safawi is not “my friend”.
What did the minister know? Not much, I listen to Marilyn Schiappa (” I’m not omniscient! ’) This Wednesday, June 14. who privately sought to blame the dysfunction on his own government and CIPDR. “I intend to take my responsibility, all of my responsibility but also, sorry, only my responsibility,” did she say
Parmi les points d’interrogation: such quelque 355 000 euros d’argent public accordés à l’Union des Sociétés d’Education physique et de Preparation Militaire (USEPPM) – dont l’essentiel a servi à payer the salaire of Mohamed Sifaoui et his son receipt. The former delegated minister of citizenship repeats it: the controversial journalist is not her “friend”, And did not try “prioritize the” His file is in the framework of the Fund’s call for tenders. During the hearing, Christian Gravelle confirmed, under oath, that Mohamed Safawi told him that he met with the minister in March 2021 to discuss the fund… “This is wrong. There was a misunderstanding of what was said between Muhammad Safawi and Wali Gravel,” Marilyn Schiappa replied that she did not know the nature of “commerce” between the journalist and his cabinet.
Terms of attribution, balance sheet, lookups…getting all about the Marian Fund controversy
In the face of the senators, Christian Gravelle’s deputy, Jean-Pierre Lafitte, also confirmed that since 2020, CIPDR has been placed under the tutelage of the government of Marlene Schiappa, which leaves little doubt as to what the minister can reasonably ignore … but again, she claims It did not follow “engineering”, Understand follow-up file.
sequel after announcement
The same for meetings with Muhammad Safawi? “I don’t know if the six meetings were held with my government or the administration stammered Marilyn Schiappa, who was barely aware of her presence “welcome courtesy” during his time in the ministry. “It is not impossible” Nor would I advise him Submit application file.
As a sign of good faith, she also cited an email sent to her teams on April 6 which she ruled to be “huge” €300,000 in endowment envisaged by USEPPM. What removes suspicions of nepotism or personal interference? He handled it very badly: This email is before the official submission date for the application files. The evidence, according to the senators, is that the Society was already the subject of a prior signal while the Selection Committee—which is responsible for selecting the Societies—has not formally commenced its work.
It also shows that, contrary to the statements of Marlene Schiappa, the Secretary of State was in fact asked by her Cabinet regarding the allocation and amount of subsidies … And to make matters worse for this disastrous verbality, a new inconsistency after a few minutes at the time to talk about the revaluation of the grant of 100,000 Euros for SOS Racisme: I was asked because there was no consensus within the committee. Obviously I gave a negative opinion. Get to know Marilyn Schiappa. And according to Sebastien Gallet, his former chief of staff, this unfavorable refereeing was made clear “Because of the rather old history of the relationship.” Between the assembly and the minister, dissatisfied with the union’s objection to its behavior in the press.
“We do not distribute public money without a small report…”
Above all, how can the lack of oversight over the work of the selection committee be explained? Three members of his cabinet sat there, but no one thought to alert him, Marlene Schiappa asserts. As a reminder, instead of the three-month deadline, which is usual for this type of tender, the Minister considered that five weeks would be sufficient to complete the selection committee’s arbitration: I did not personally participate in the implementation. I have not received an alert from management saying these deadlines will not be viable.”-she repeats.
sequel after announcement
completely ” abnormal “, Senator Jean-François Huson answers. The same astonishment comes from the chair of the commission, Claude Raynal (PS), who points out the lack of good explanations to justify the allocation of subsidies: “ There is nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing? You don’t distribute public money without making a small report… There isn’t even that. We only have a list of names with amounts. Do you consider this absence of objective information tools to be normal? That there is no report of carried out? Or even statement of logical decisions? Is this usual in the departments you know? »
Marianne Fund: “This case is a holy bread for conspiracy”
Among the supported associations, amounting to 330,000 euros, the lifespan of “Rebuild Public”, which broadcast political content against Emmanuel Macron’s opponents during the election period, was only a few weeks old, recalls the senator: This union didn’t even have a budget to provide. There is nowhere else! » And a harsh conclusion: You tell us about a project you’ve created and then say ‘I’m not. This is serious. When we are in token actions, it must work like hell. There, she gives us technical answers, but she lacks a little heart. Once it starts, everything else seems irrelevant to you. »
I answer, without laughter, from Marlene Schiappa, current Secretary of State responsible for the Social and Solidarity Economy and Collective Life: “ Of course, there are rules and usages that would be helpful to explain. I am very anxious about the recommendations that your committee will make, in my capacity as responsible for relations with the life of the associations, in order to move towards greater transparency. It will be of great value. As rumors of a reshuffle continue to circulate, Marilyn Schiappa is, more than ever, on edge.
