Reviving Lijst Dedecker: The Annual Cost of Parliamentarians and Ministers in Our Country

2023-08-13 16:59:00

“Nearly 700 million euros is the annual cost of all parliamentarians and ministers in our country. […] Restarting Lijst Dedecker may change that.”

It is with this provocative statement that Peter Reekmans begins his plea for a return of the Lijst Dedecker (LDD) to the Flemish and federal elections of 2024. The mayor of Glabbeek (Flemish Brabant) published Thursday on his personal website and on Doorbraak this call to relaunch the training of Jean-Marie Dedecker. On Sunday, the interested party tweeted the article without adding a comment, but that was enough to revive the rumors.

Since the beginning of July, speculation has been rife regarding the revival of the Lijst Dedecker, the party which won 5 seats in the federal parliament in 2007 but which disappeared in 2014. To date, Jean-Marie Dedecker, l he man who carries all the strength of the movement on his shoulders, has not confirmed the restart of this party which might overshadow the Open VLD and the N-VA.

In October 2022, the septuagenarian confided to the DH that he did not want to return for a new season in the House in order to confide in the mayorship of Middelkerke (provided he was re-elected). “I think if I stand as a candidate for Parliament, my wife will file for divorce.”

Contacted this Sunday by us, the ultraliberal kicks in touch. “I can’t confirm anything at this stage,” he replies by phone. “Some people, like Peter Reekmans, push me to start over. I will not decide until the end of this month. For now, these are still just rumours. Even if there is a real demand.”

In his argument for the return of Jean-Marie Dedecker, Peter Reekmans, former central figure of the LDD, is full of praise for the former federal coach of the Belgian Judo League. About the leader known for his ruthless outspokenness, he says: “There is only one solution to restore confidence in the Rue de la Loi […]. This can only be done by bringing back to the Rue de la Loi the politicians who dare to say things as they are.”

According to Reekmans, only “a few people in Flanders” are able to offer a viable political alternative and “one man is eminently capable of it, namely Jean-Marie Dedecker (LDD)”. The former Flemish MP claims to be “bombarded” with emails and phone calls concerning this comeback. Several Flemish mayors have already expressed their interest in joining the List if it were to be reconstituted.

Without a filter, Jean-Marie Dedecker has never been afraid to shoot on sight what he doesn’t like. This earned him ejection from the Open VLD and the N-VA. Today, he commits incendiary chronicles in Knack. In an interview, he curbs “the woke brigades”, the “catastrophic” Vivaldi and its leader who has “absolutely no legitimacy” or even the environmentalists who use “climate anxiety to establish their power”.

If these rumors are buzzing in Flanders, it is because the return of the LDD might deal a fatal blow to the Open VLD. By winning votes, the Dedecker List might push Prime Minister Alexander De Croo’s party below the electoral threshold, which is currently in a very bad position in the polls. As a reminder, Jean-Marie Dedecker, it was 40,000 votes of preference in 2019 as an independent list pusher for the N-VA. With LDD, his score might be even higher.

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