Since 2011, RSA fraud has been one of Eric Ciotti’s “major battles.” He aims to present an image of an uncompromising crackdown, and his track record seems impressive: 32 million euros saved over the past 5 years, including 10 million in 2016 alone.
While the crackdown on fraud is just and essential, the campaign that Eric Ciotti leads, both in the department and at the National Assembly, conveys a sense of great determination against the small issue of RSA fraud, distracting from the larger issues behind it.
The larger issues are significant and reveal immense frauds. These include tax evasion (60 to 80 billion euros per year) and the CICE (17.5 billion in 2015), whose use escapes all scrutiny.
The larger issue is the reality of corporate social fraud. In 2014, a report from the Court of Auditors noted that corporate social contribution fraud amounted to between 20.1 and 24.9 billion euros in 2012, representing 5% of all social contributions. In some sectors (trade, construction), more than 10% of companies are allegedly engaging in fraud!
Yet, Eric Ciotti remains very discreet on all these matters!
Let’s make a brief comparison with the RSA. In 2016, out of more than 30,000 RSA beneficiaries in the Alpes-Maritimes, 223 administrative fines were issued, representing 0.74%, 110 people had their RSA rights suspended after refusing 2 “reasonable job offers,” representing 0.36%, and 14 complaints were filed, representing 0.046%. This is a very low proportion, but it doesn’t stop Eric Ciotti from constantly stigmatizing RSA beneficiaries.
This reality puts into perspective the actual weight of RSA fraud within the economy of our country and department. It’s a drop in the ocean that allows the right and the National Front to stigmatize the most disadvantaged and divide them. Meanwhile, no one discusses the rest, namely the billions stolen from the public by major corporations and other rentiers.
Robert Injey, PCF-Front de gauche Nice
