Georges Gilkinet
Deputy Prime Minister of Belgium
Assumed office
1 October 2020
Prime MinisterAlexander De Croo
Minister of Mobility and the National Railway Company
Assumed office
1 October 2020
Preceded byFrançois Bellot
Chamber of Representatives
Assumed office
2007
ConstituencyNamur
Personal details
Born (1971-01-25) 25 January 1971
Assesse, Namur, Belgium
Political partyEcolo
Alma materIHECS
Occupationjournalist, politician
WebsiteOfficial site

Georges Gilkinet (born 25 January 1971) is a Belgian green politician of Ecolo, and as of 1 October 2020, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mobility and the National Railway Company in the cabinet of Alexander De Croo.

Biography

George Gilkinet was born on 25 January 1971 in Assesse in the Namur Province of Belgium.[1] He graduated from Institut des hautes études des communications sociales in Brussels, and was a sports journalist for Canal C for 15 years.[2]

In 2007, Gilkinet was first elected to the Chamber of Representatives for Ecolo.[1] He specialized in finances, and between 2012 and 2014 was the Chairman of the Finance Commission.[3]

In 2011, the criminal investigation in the Belgian part of the Kazakhgate affair was closed after the suspects agreed to pay a fine of €522,500 each.[4] In 2017, a parliamentary enquiry which included Gilkinet was launched to investigate whether lobbying and manipulation had taken place. During the investigation, one of the suspects in the case took legal action against Gilkinet, and he was the victim of hacking.[5] The enquiry concluded that the lobbying efforts had no significant effect on the outcome of the case. The opposition and Gilkinet disagreed with the conclusion. According to Gilkinet, the enquiry was a first class burial.[6]

He became Chairman of Ecolo in 2018.[7] On 1 October 2020, Gilkinet became Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mobility and the National Railway Company in the cabinet of Alexander De Croo.[1]

Judicial conviction

Between 2017 and 2018, the Ecolo MP, then vice-chairman and very active member of the parliamentary commission of inquiry into Kazakhgate, makes a series of incriminating remarks, defaming Patokh Chodiev. He repeated his remarks in La Libre Belgique, Vif l'Express and Plus Magazine (Belgium), prompting several legal actions by the businessman.[8] On April 30, 2018, the parliamentary commission of inquiry unanimously concluded that the naturalization procedures had not been influenced by Serge Kubla.[9] The commission also acquits Chodiev of any involvement in the adoption of the law on criminal transactions.[10] In 2019, the Court of First Instance of Namur declared Chodiev's complaint against Gilkinet inadmissible because of his status as a parliamentarian.[11] The businessman appeals the court decision.[12]

On January 28, 2021, the Court of Appeal of Liège condemns Georges Gilkinet, for his defamatory remarks. On November 24, 2022, the Court of Cassation confirms the basis of Georges Gilikinet's judicial condemnation, thus giving reason to Patokh Chodiev.[8][13]

Honours

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Overzicht: wie is wie in regering-De Croo?". Knack (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  2. ↑ "D'observateur, il est devenu acteur". L'Avenir (in French). Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  3. ↑ "Georges Gilkinet". Ecolo (in French). Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  4. ↑ "Kazakhgate : Chodiev n'a payé que 522.500 euros pour sa transaction". Le Vif (in French). Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  5. ↑ "Gilkinet visé par le piratage informatique d'Ecolo: "des représailles à l'enquête sur le Kazakhgate"". RTBF (in French). 29 May 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "Meerderheid en oppositie staan tegenover elkaar in de parlementaire onderzoekscommissie Kazachgate". VRT (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "Georges Gilkinet remplace Jean-Marc Nollet comme chef de groupe Ecolo à la Chambre". RTBF (in French). Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  8. 1 2 Van Eeckhaut, Fabien (4 January 2023). "Kazakhgate : Georges Gilkinet définitivement condamné pour préjudice moral à l'encontre du milliardaire Patokh Chodiev". rtbf.be.
  9. ↑ Segers, Frank (2018). "Meerderheid en oppositie staan tegenover elkaar in de parlementaire onderzoekscommissie Kazachgate". vrt.be.
  10. ↑ "Kazachgate: Patokh Chodiev wil verontschuldigingen van Belgische autoriteiten". vrt.be. 27 April 2018.
  11. ↑ Clevers, Antoine (21 June 2019). "Patokh Chodiev perd en justice face au député Écolo Georges Gilkinet". lalibre.be.
  12. ↑ Clevers, Antoine (25 June 2019). "Patokh Chodiev va en appel contre Georges Gilkinet (Écolo)". lalibre.be.
  13. ↑ "La Cour de Cassation confirme la condamnation de Georges Gilkinet". lesoir.be. 4 January 2023.
  14. ↑ "Moniteur Belge - Belgisch Staatsblad". Federal Government of Belgium (in Dutch). 27 August 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2020.

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