Strong rally for the National Rally (RN): Fabrice Leggeri, director of the European agency responsible for border control (Frontex) from 2015 to 2022, announced in an interview with the Journal du Dimanche (JDD) that he was joining the list led by Jordan Bardella in the European elections. “My goal is to put my experience and expertise at the service of the French. (…) I am convinced that this is the political option which will give the French the possibility of regaining control of their future,” he declared.
According to Mr. Leggeri, the RN “is distinguished by its courage and lucidity in correctly identifying problems while proposing appropriate solutions”. “Our objective is to regain control of the borders, both those of the European Union and those of France. The RN has a concrete plan and the capacity to carry it out. We are determined to combat migratory overwhelm, which the European Commission and the Eurocrats do not consider as a problem, but rather as a project: I can testify to this. »
This 55-year-old senior civil servant, enarque and normalien, held the post of director of Frontex from 2015 to 2022, before resigning following a disciplinary investigation. He was a controversial director, regularly accused by NGOs of tolerating illegal pushbacks of migrants and he had established himself as a defender of the impermeability of European borders.
Targeted by a disciplinary investigation
“The European elections of June 9 represent a unique opportunity to put France and Europe back on the right path,” he added in the columns of the JDD. Jordan Bardella is currently leading all the polls for this European election, around 30%, with around ten points ahead of the Macronist majority. The addition of this senior official is a sign of the far-right party’s desire to expand its pool of experts and technocrats to gain credibility in order to one day exercise power.
“Former boss of Frontex, Fabrice Leggeri was forced to resign, dropped by Emmanuel Macron because he was acting against the submersion of Europe,” Mr. Bardella said in a message on X. Fabrice Leggeri had resigned in April 2022 from the executive management of Frontex after the opening of a disciplinary investigation by the European Anti-Fraud Office, OLAF. The senior official was the target of a non-public report from this body which, according to press information, criticized him for “not having respected procedures, for having demonstrated disloyalty towards the European Union” and of being responsible for “poor personal management”.
“Regarding these accusations, it is important to note that neither the European Parliament nor the Frontex board of directors have found concrete evidence to support them,” said Fabrice Leggeri in the JDD. “In reality, for wanting to control immigration, I came under pressure and felt general abandonment. The French government pressured me to resign. Germany was not inclined to support me. The European Commission, clearly hostile towards me, wanted me to leave,” he added.
Headquartered in Warsaw, Frontex is one of the most politically exposed agencies in the European Union. Bringing together coast guards and border guards, its resources have been regularly reinforced to deal with the influx of migrants at European borders.