A controversial candidate for the job of councilman in the Brussels municipality of Molenbeek has been forced to step down after journalists dug up his criminal record.
Socialists (PS) and Marxists (PTB) had agreed to form a local government and, on November 26, the Socialists had nominated Yassine Akki to be a councilman.
One day later, Akki stepped down after francophone journalists dug into his past, which revealed a serious criminal record.
News outlet La Dernière Heure reported on November 27 that in March 2001, the now 48-year-old Akki was found guilty of the rape of a minor who was over 16 at the time of the offence. He was sentenced to four years in prison, two of which were suspended.
Earlier, in 1998, he had already received a 10-month suspended sentence for burglary.
The Socialists had allegedly been aware of the convictions for some time.
Among others, Brussels PS president Ahmed Laaouej and Molenbeek mayor Catherine Moureaux (PS) had reportedly received a document containing Akki’s criminal record.
Others within the party were said to have opposed his nomination as councilman.
Akki served on the city council during the last legislature and has been president of the Port of Brussels since 2020.
In a press release, the Socialist Party noted that the incidents “took place nearly 30 years ago” and that Akki had since fully reintegrated into society.
“He has built a family, is married, and is the father of six children. He engages in politics for the most disadvantaged residents of Molenbeek,” the party said.
The Socialists expressed gratitude to Akki for what they called his “sense of responsibility” and said a new councilman candidate would be appointed soon.
“I remain deeply committed to the progressive project that the new majority is advocating to improve the lives of Molenbeek’s residents,” Akki said in response.
“Solely in the interest of the people of Molenbeek and my voters, who have placed their trust in me, I have decided to step aside to avoid obstructing the formation of the majority this Sunday. The people of Molenbeek can count on my determination to continue fighting for greater social justice.”
The outgoing Molenbeek alderman Jamel Azaoum is expected to replace him as a candidate. Akki remains a municipal councillor and thus his withdrawal will likely have little to no impact on the political balance in the Brussels’ municipality.
Philippe Close, the mayor of Brussels and a party colleague of Akki, declined to comment.
Green party opposition councillor Hilde Sagon said: “The citizens of Molenbeek deserve leaders with an impeccable track record, not figures who undermine trust in politics.”
Liberal politician for the MR party Mathieu Bihet said: “Such a character has no place in a municipal college where exemplarity must be the order of the day.”
The Brussels’ Socialist Party has been under fire. An investigative TV show implicated the party in a scheme in which public welfare money was handed out without any background checks.
The party controversially decided to ally with the far-left Marxist Workers’ Party Party in Molenbeek, a part of the capital which has in the past been notorious for being a breeding ground for terrorism.
