“My probity is intact,” said Secretary of State Marlène Schiappa on Sunday, judging that the “accusations against (her) had deflated” after the publication of the report of the Senate commission of inquiry into the management of the Marianne Fund that she had launched in 2021. “I welcome the publication of the Senate report which makes a certain number of criticisms, of course, but above all which gives recommendations for the future. Interesting recommendations in my opinion, which must be studied “, said in an interview with Corse-Morning the Secretary of State in charge of the Social and Solidarity Economy and Associative Life.
“The chairman of the Senate inquiry committee himself admitted that these accusations were absurd”
“Then I see the charges against me deflated. Some have talked about embezzlement, favoritism, and today the chairman of the Senate Investigative Committee himself admitted that those charges were nonsense. My probity is intact and that is what matters to me“, she assured.
On July 6, the rapporteur for the Senate investigation devoted to this controversial file, Jean-François Husson (LR), had squashed the management of the Marianne Fund, denouncing “lack of rigor”, “opacity” and “casuality” and qualifying of “fiasco” this initiative intended to finance counter speeches to radical Islam. He also lamented that during her long hearing before the commission of inquiry, Marlène Schiappa was “largely discarded on (her) cabinet” and that she had “a lot of memory loss”.
“It’s the opposition’s game to call for the resignation”
In the case of the Marianne Fund, justice also opened an investigation, entrusted to an examining magistrate at the beginning of May, for “embezzlement of public funds, embezzlement of public funds by negligence, breach of trust and illegal taking of interests”.
Figure of the Macron galaxy and member of the government since 2017, Marlène Schiappa has seen her star fade. It is now weakened, with repeated calls for resignation from the left opposition. “It is the game of the opposition to call for the resignation of such and such a member of the government as soon as there is a problem or a controversy. For my part, I retain the many supports of my colleagues in the government and of many others and that is what is important to me”, she reacted in Corse-Morning Sunday.