Former French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has been questioned by the court about the way in which the French government has handled the corona crisis. Franceinfo reports this and the information has also been confirmed to the French news agency AFP.
The interrogation of the former prime minister by three magistrates of the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR) took place on Tuesday. He was heard as ‘témoin assisté’. This special status under French law is somewhere between a witness and a charge of suspicion.
Philippe was questioned because, according to some, he did not take sufficient measures to protect health personnel from the corona virus. Despite numerous warnings, he is also said to have not sufficiently anticipated the epidemic.
Interministerial crisis cell
According to the newspaper Le Monde, he also had to explain why he allowed the first round of the municipal elections on March 15, 2020, even though the number of infections was already on the rise. Questions are also raised about the fact that the Interministerial Crisis Cell (CIC) was only activated on March 17, 2020.
The CJR had launched an investigation into French corona policy in September last year. Several complaints had been received, including the lack of protective equipment for health care providers and the population and the need to wear a mask or not. The CJR is the only body authorized to prosecute and try members of the government for crimes or offenses committed in the performance of their duties.
Philippe was initially summoned for an interrogation on Tuesday, October 24, but the interrogation took place a week earlier. Emmanuel Marsigny, the former prime minister’s lawyer, declined to comment.
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