Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah on the front page of Paris Match… It didn’t take much to stir up, in fact, a wind of revolt within the editorial staff of this magazine on the cover of which cassocks are rather rare. Robert Sarah is presented as “ man of influence and peace “. In the six inside pages devoted to the cardinal, the journalist Philippe Labro paints the portrait of him as a man ” humble, discreet a 77-year-old cardinal who comes from Guinea, a 90% Muslim country “, a man ” come from afar, very far, to become, over the decades, a prelate as adored by conservatives as challenged by progressives (…) In Guinea, he embodies freedom, he is on the side of the people. In Europe, he is judged as a rigid conservative, opposed to the transformations of modernity and mores sums up Philippe Labro, pointing out, to make himself better understood, that Monsignor Sarah has a “ huge influence “: that of a ” pope maker “.
But internally, therefore, “ the editors ” of Paris Match protested against this Front page devoted to the most respected cardinal in Africa, reports the newspaper The world, the Society of Journalists accusing Vincent Bolloré of having imposed the said front page. A real storm in a clam.
Castle life in France against dubious money from abroad
The weekly The Obs publishes a survey, supported by a press consortium in Europe, which identified 196 real estate transactions, carried out by 62 foreign personalities, heads of state, relatives of the latter, ministers or controversial businessmen, and which, between 1985 and 2020, from Saint-Tropez to the 16th arrondissement of Paris, from Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat to Montfort-l’Amaury, spent in all “ 744 million euros to buy real estate in France. Transactions on which the question of potential money laundering legitimately arises » money, spells out The Obs. All with the greatest benevolence of notaries and authorities who could not be more passive.
Witness Sevil Aliyeva, daughter of former President of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev who ruled the country from 1993 to 2003, and sister of the current President of the country. According The ObsSevil Aliyeva, sometimes “ music composer “, sometimes ” no occupation “, has invested 52 million euros in real estate in France.
Witness, the eldest son of President Paul Biya of Cameroon. According The Obs“ Franck Emmanuel Biya thus acquired for nearly 3 million euros in 2004, at the age of 33, a house with swimming pool in the very popular private domain of Cap Martin, a stone’s throw from Monaco. “. Witness again, Chantal Biya, the wife of the Cameroonian president, ” without profession (…) which did not prevent her from spending more than 2 million euros to buy three apartments in the 16e arrondissement of Paris, in Levallois-Perret and in Nice between 1997 and 2009 “, precise The Obsalso mentioning the case of the current Minister of Defense of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto, or that of the Emirati businessman Khadem al Qubaisi, today in prison for his participation in one of the most great misappropriation of funds in history.
Accounts and misaccounts of the “ no matter what »
Danger, finally, on the public finances of France. The alert is launched by the Court of Auditors. In the weekly Pointthe President of the Court of Auditors Pierre Moscovici “ unveils its audit of public finances (…) And warns Macron against the temptation to let spending slip away “.
According to Pierre Moscovici, the recovery of French public accounts at the start of Emmanuel Macron’s first five-year term ” was brought to a sudden halt by the Yellow Vests crisis. While the reduction in levies has increased, the government has given up on the reduction in expenditure “. According Point, the report of the Court of Auditors is worrying. France “ emerged from the Covid crisis with one of the worst structural deficits and public debt in the euro zone (…) Its public debt jumped to 112.5% of GDP in 2021, an increase of 15.1 points, higher than the average of its euro zone partners », Reports Point.