The appointment of Jacques Santer to head an arm of the euro zone's bailout fund drew fire from critics on Tuesday 24/01 who said he was ill-suited for the job because of his disastrous tenure as president of the European Commission. Supporters rallied around, however, saying Santer was a capable and solid servant of the European Union.
A former prime minister of Luxembourg, Santer was president of the EU's 20-person executive in 1999 when it was forced to resign en masse over allegations of corruption. Detractors said Santer, who was not accused of wrongdoing, presided over a Commission lacking in control over where taxpayers' money was going. It was arguably the biggest scandal to befall the EU since its founding.
Jean-Claude Juncker, the...
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