This alert had been communicated by the Regional Chamber of Accounts. Now, the investigation moves to the next stage, which will shed full light on this case. No reaction from the Nice City Hall or from Vinci, whose subsidiary companies Vinci Construction and Vinci Concessions are the partners in this operation. On the other hand, a comment from Patrick Allemand, leader of the eco-socialist group of the City Council, could not be missed.
The national financial prosecutor has just opened a preliminary investigation into the financing method, based on a public-private partnership, of the Allianz stadium in Nice. Its construction cost a little over 240 million euros, of which 69 million was through public financing.
The investigation is entrusted to the Central Office for Combating Corruption and Financial and Tax Offenses. It follows the report by the Regional Chamber of Accounts, which questioned the financing method of this large sports facility in the Var plain.
The Nice prosecutor’s office had been seized but preferred to entrust the case to the national jurisdiction and the specialized police of the OCLCIFF.
Patrick Allemand: “I have expressed my doubts and concerns about the legal structure that secured the financing of the Allianz Riviera from the beginning. Moreover, our group has always voted against the principle of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) because it posed a financial risk for the City and a lot of opacity in the structure.
A few months ago, the provisional report of the Regional Chamber of Accounts (CRC) was severe and reinforced our concerns. The fact that the CRC has transmitted this file to the justice is hardly reassuring. Were there, in addition, embezzlements or irregularities? It is up to justice to say.
In any case, the opening by the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office of a preliminary investigation entrusted to the National Office for Combating Corruption and Financial Crimes shows that the Justice takes this matter very seriously.”
To be continued…
