Belgian lobbyist involves EU Court in Pfizergate row

A Belgian citizen has filed a second complaint against European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, this time with the EU Court in Luxembourg, in connection with the controversial Pfizer-gate affair.

Read the original French article here.

Frédéric Baldan, a 35-year-old Belgian lobbyist specialising in trade relations between the EU and China, has applied for ‘interim measures’ against von der Leyen before the EU Court in Luxembourg.

If successful, the court can order the suspension of the operation of the contested act – in this case, the redacted COVID-19 contracts which have been the focus of the Pfizergate affair – or take other interim measures. Baldan is requesting for von der Leyen and all Commission members to be suspended from office during the investigation.

The Belgian lobbyist, who is seeking €100,000 in damages for his loss of confidence in the European institutions, confirmed to EURACTIV that the complaint had indeed been “received” on 30 May and “registered” by the EU General Court.

The aim of the court case is to hold von der Leyen accountable for how she brokered COVID-19 vaccine deals with Pfizer, notably by exchanging text messages with its CEO, Albert Bourla, as revealed in April 2021 by the New York Times.

Von der Leyen and Bourla allegedly negotiated the contract for 1.8 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses worth €35 billion through text messages.

This affair undermines “public morality, the legitimate confidence of citizens in the European institutions and transparency”, said Baldan at a press conference organised in Paris on Thursday (8 June) by French Green MEP Michèle Rivasi.

“The European institutions are also asked to implement the procedure set out in the procedure set out in Article 17 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) for the appointment of a new President of the Commission and new Commissioners,” Baldan’s lawyer contend.

On 5 April, Baldan filed a similar complaint before an investigating judge in Liège, in which he accused von der Leyen of usurping her functions and title, destroying public documents and illegal taking of interests and corruption. The complaint is currently stuck in the judiciary process.

If the Liège case is successful, the judge could order a lifting of immunity on the Commission chief, and for the text messages to be examined.

“The subject goes beyond the pandemic. It really calls into question the transparency of the European institutions. This affair must serve as a lesson,” said Rivasi, co-chair of the European Parliament’s Special COVID committee, at the press conference.

Lobbyist’s SMS-gate suit against von der Leyen not yet processed

Two months after its submission to a Belgian court, the complaint filed by a Belgian lobbyist against European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen remains at the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO).

On 5 April, Frédéric Baldan, a Belgian lobbyist, …

Not defending public interest 

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) also opened an investigation into the case in October.

“[EPPO] confirms that it has an ongoing investigation into the acquisition of COVID-19 vaccines in the European Union,” the EU’s fund fraud watchdog said in a press release.

“This exceptional confirmation is the result of the extremely high level of public interest [in this case],” it added.

In July 2022, the EU Ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, also strongly criticised the Commission for its lack of transparency in the matter as the EU Commission claimed the text messages could not be found after the Ombudsman requested access to them.

“The handling of this request for access to documents leaves the unfortunate impression of a European institution that is not forthcoming on major issues of public interest,” the Ombudsman said at the time.

For its part, the European Commission denies von der Leyen’s involvement in the contract negotiations.

“The President of the Commission was not involved in any contract negotiations. I have said this before, and I will say it again,” Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides told the COVI Committee in March.

The content of these contracts remains unclear, as they are redacted and therefore illegible, while the text messages cannot be found.

However, MEP Rivasi argued that “it is not the public interest that has been defended but the interests of the manufacturer”.

Next steps

The General Court will agree to interim measures if three conditions are met: the complaint in the main proceedings “must not appear, at first sight, to be without reasonable substance”; the applicant “must show that the measures are urgent and that it would suffer serious and irreparable harm without them”; and the measures “must take account of the balancing of the parties’ interests and of the public interest”.

However, if such measures are taken during the investigation, they are self-contained and are not a prejudgement of the final finding.

[Edited by Nathalie Weatherald]

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