For six months, Anticor’s staff waited for the renewal of its approval. Wednesday December 27, the day after the legal deadline, no trace in the Official newspaper of this sesame which since 2015 has allowed the anti-corruption association to take effective legal action in cases of breach of probity, particularly in the event of inaction by the prosecution.
The lack of response from the executive constitutes an implicit refusal of approval which the association will contest before the administrative court, at the cost of further delays. “ This decision unfortunately does not surprise us because we are well aware that our actions against corruption deeply annoy the government. It saddens us because it constitutes an obstacle to the action of hundreds of volunteers who fight throughout France against abuse of power. “, reacted Elise Van Beneden, president of the association involved in 161 legal investigations in France.
The entourage of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, did not respond to requests from World. The Quai d’Orsay endorsed in extremis responsibility for this decision after the signing, on December 23, of a deportation decree by Elisabeth Borne. The Prime Minister, who also did not react, is likely to be concerned by two cases brought by Anticor to court: that of the Triangle tower in Paris, when she was general director of town planning at the Town Hall of Paris, as well as that of the memorandum of understanding signed in 2015 between the State and the motorway concessionaires. She had led these negotiations as chief of staff to Ségolène Royal, alongside Alexis Kohler, then chief of staff to the Minister of the Economy Emmanuel Macron, who has since become secretary general of the Elysée.
This implicit refusal to renew the approval represents the epilogue of a political-judicial saga that began in August 2020. That summer, Anticor requested the renewal of this sesame from the Ministry of Justice. The Minister of Justice, Eric Dupond-Moretti, deported himself three months later to the Prime Minister’s office: since October, he has been the target of a complaint from Anticor for “illegal taking of interests”. The renewal of the approval is announced, by order of Prime Minister Jean Castex, on April 2, 2021, an hour and a half before the end of the deadline.
Consequences for ongoing procedures
The relief from the association is short-lived. In June 2021, a former member excluded from the association and a member breaking with management attacked this decision, calling into question the “selfless and independent character” from the Association. On June 23, 2023, the administrative court canceled the approval. Anticor immediately appeals and submits a new application for approval.
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