PARIS:Accusations flew in France on Friday between the office of President EmmanuelMacron and his disgraced ex-bodyguard Alexandre Benalla over diplomaticpassports he was supposed to hand over when he was sacked. Foreign MinisterJean-Yves Le Drian is set to refer the case to prosecutors after reports thatBenalla repeatedly used the passports following his dismissal in August.
Any use of thesepassports after he was sacked "would be against the law", the foreignministry warned in a statement. Benalla, in a letter to Macron's chief of staffPatrick Strzoda, of which AFP has obtained a copy, acknowledged that he hadbeen in contact with Elysee staff since his departure. But he insisted that noneof his subsequent activities had had anything to do with the government.
"At alltimes while carrying out the functions entrusted to me by the Elysee, I nevercarried out personal and private missions and certainly never received paymentas a result, directly or indirectly," he added. "I have never usedany recommendation or support from the presidency in the context of my newactivities", he wrote.
To suggest sowould be a complete lie and defamatory, he added. Benalla, Macron's campaignbodyguard who was granted a senior security job following the centrist'selection victory last year, had twice been requested to give the passportsback, the foreign ministry statement said. But Benalla's entourage told AFP thepassports were returned to him after he was sacked.
He left them inhis "office at the Elysee, and then they were given back", a sourceclose to Benalla said, accusing opponents of seeking to "destroy hisreputation". His entourage refused to comment on how Benalla may have usedthe passports. On Thursday, investigative website Mediapart reported thatBenalla used a diplomatic passport to enter several African countries as wellas Israel in recent weeks.
'President mustreveal truth'
Benalla was atthe centre of a major scandal this summer after it emerged in July that heroughed up protesters during a May Day demonstration in Paris while wearing apolice helmet. He was not fired until after the media revelations, prompting awave of accusations from government opponents of a presidential cover-up.
Benalla is nowgenerating more unwelcome headlines following reports that he has been meetingwith senior African officials, sparking concern among officials that he hasbeen profiting from his former insider status. He met with Chad's PresidentIdriss Deby earlier this month, and Le Monde newspaper reported that he alsomet with the Republic of Congo's President Denis Sassou-Nguesso as well as topofficials in Cameroon.
Furthersuggestions that Benalla may have used a diplomatic passport for these Africantravels have sparked a flurry of criticism among government opponents."The president must reveal the truth on this affair, it's veryserious," said Laurence Sailliet, a spokeswoman for the rightwingRepublicans party. The scandal is back in the news at an unwelcome time forMacron, who has suffered weeks of violent "yellow vest"anti-government protests. - AFP