The trial against Sihame El Kaouakibi is set to start on Thursday, as the former Belgian politician and entrepreneur is being prosecuted for forgery and subsidy fraud.
El Kaouakibi stepped into the political limelight in early 2019, when Open Vld, now known as Anders, announced her as the second candidate on the party list in Antwerp for the upcoming elections in Flanders.
At just 32, the social entrepreneur had a remarkable track record. She ran the popular Let's Go Urban, an after-school organisation offering educational programmes for children and young people, and was involved in WannaWork, a job-matching platform that connected young people with companies.
The municipality of Antwerp and other governments granted Let's Go Urban several subsidies amounting to the investment of millions into the project.
Despite her young age, she previously held a seat on the board of directors of the Flemish public broadcaster VRT and represented her party on the political stage.
Queen Mathilde of Belgium talks to Sihame El Kaouakibi during a meeting in 2014. Credit: Belga/Eric Lalmand
Her ballot performance was overshadowed by the far-right Vlaams Belang's political victory in her province, but El Kaouakibi secured a seat in the Flemish Parliament as her party was one of the few to stabilise that evening.
Less than two years later, El Kaouakibi's career came crashing down.
Suspecting foul play, several directors of Let's Go Urban had ordered an audit of the organisation's finances, which revealed unexplained money transfers to outside companies and gaps in the bookkeeping.
Let's Go Urban repeatedly used money from subsidies to pay for expenses that were not part of its operations, including an industrial-size kitchen worth around €26.000 that was installed in the offices of JJ House, a company hosting events.
The revelations caused a political storm, and multiple investigations were launched into the misappropriation of subsidy funds.
El Kaouakibi denied the allegations, and she was publicly supported by her party. However, when a subsequent report by the provisional administrator was published a month later, El Kaouakibi's position in the party became unrecoverable.
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The report alleged that El Kaouakibi personally enriched herself through Let's Go Urban and consistently misused funds provided to the organisation.
Open Vld suspended her, after which she decided to leave the party. Let's Go Urban and the other companies she ran were shut down, and El Kaouakibi disappeared from the limelight. She still holds her seat in the Flemish parliament until the next election, but has rarely shown up, as she spends long periods on sick leave.
Today, El Kaouakibi stands trial on charges of forgery and subsidy fraud. The public prosecutor alleges that she forged invoices and contracts to secure subsidies, and then misappropriated those funds to enrich herself and people around her.
If convicted, she faces up to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of 800,000 euros.
El Kaouakibi denies all allegations.
Sihame El Kaouakibi pictured at a plenary session of the Flemish Parliament. Credit: Belga/Dirk Waem
