Paris (AFP)
The former Minister of Justice and former CEO of Elf-Aquitaine Albin Chalandon has died, announced the Minister of Justice Eric Dupond-Moretti, who on Thursday salutes the memory of a "great servant" of the Republic.
"With the death of Albin Chalandon, France loses one of its Liberation fighters, the Republic one of its great servants and the Ministry of Justice one of its former Guards. At this moment, I think with emotion of his wife , his children and his relatives, "wrote the minister in a tweet.
Albin Chalandon, who had a dual career as a politician and a businessman, was 100 years old.
Born on June 11, 1920 in Reyrieux (Ain), graduated in letters, he joined the Resistance and participated in the Liberation of Paris in 1944. After the Finance inspectorate, he became a member of the cabinet of Léon Blum, then president of the temporary government.
He then became involved in political life and joined the RPF (Gaullist) in 1948. In 1952, he created the Commercial Bank of Paris, which he chaired from 1964 to 1968.
Returning to politics in 1958 with General de Gaulle, he became Secretary General of the UNR (1958-59), then Deputy Secretary General of the UDR (1974-75). Deputy for Hauts-de-Seine (1968 then 1973), he was elected deputy for the North in 1986 but gave up his electoral mandate to enter the government.
Minister of Industry under Georges Pompidou from May to July 1968, he was Minister of Equipment and Housing in the Couve de Murville (1968-69) and Chaban-Delmas (1969-72) governments.
It was in 1969 that he had the idea of offering inexpensive single-family homes to the poorest households. About 65,000 "chalandonnettes" were built between 1970 and 1972. But some encountered technical problems, causing the dissatisfaction of their owners.
Albin Chalandon then became president of the nationalized group Elf-Aquitaine (1977-83). He was removed from it after the left came to power for wanting to oppose the restructuring plan for French heavy chemicals.
Appointed Keeper of the Seals in 1986 in the cohabitation government of Jacques Chirac, Mr. Chalandon is the symbol of a security policy.
In 2010, he was taken into custody in connection with the Visionex affair, a company suspected of manufacturing internet terminals allowing illegal betting and targeted by an investigation in which his son was indicted.
He is one of the mentors of the former Minister of Justice Rachida Dati.
Grand'Croix of the Legion of Honor and Croix-de-Guerre 39-45, Albin Chalandon was the father of three children. He shared the life of journalist Catherine Nay.
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