Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Koen Geens (CD&V) has informed his party that he does not want to become a minister in the Vivaldi government. That has been confirmed to our editors. He wants to make way for the renewal and rejuvenation operation of chairman Joachim Coens.
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Geens would support the Vivaldi formula, which is now in full negotiation, but he will no longer be part of it. CD&V chairman Joachim Coens wants to work on a ‘substantial renewal’ of his management team. His departure would offer opportunities to former youth chairman Sammy Mahdi, who, like Geens, comes from Flemish Brabant.
Heavyweight
Geens is an absolute heavyweight in his party. The law professor first made a career as chief of staff to the then Flemish Prime Minister Kris Peeters (CD&V) between 2007 and 2009. He then became Minister of Finance in the Di Rupo government and Minister of Justice under Prime Minister Charles Michel (MR) successor Sophie Wilmès (MR).
Geens exudes solidity, knows his department through and through and, as an academic and ex-lawyer, has a wide network, our newspaper wrote in the government’s report last year. He laid his head on the logging block several times during the term of office, both after the attacks and after the deadly shooting in Liège, but was always able to stay put thanks to a widely held confidence.
Protest
The participation of the CD&V in the Vivaldi project has met with internal protest. The turbulent past days have strengthened the opponents at CD&V in their opinion that the party has no business in the unedited coalition.
This morning, CD&V figurehead Hilde Crevits made it appear that she is not ready for the premiership. ‘I’m working on the future of Flanders and I really want to continue that.’ Joachim Coens explicitly advanced Crevits as candidate prime minister during the government negotiations.
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