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Declines to be quizzed

PARIS: The former French President, Jacques Chirac, is refusing to be questioned in an investigation into an apparent smear scandal during his tenure as president, his office said. But Mr. Chirac’s office refused to comment on Saturday on a report that he had also been summoned for questioning about a second scandal that dates back to his years as Paris mayor from 1977 to 1995. Mr. Chirac faces a slew of potential legal problems now that he no longer has presidential immunity, which expired a week ago. In one case, investigating judges want to question him about the so-called Clearstream affair, his office said in a statement. The murky scandal centred on damaging but false allegations that Mr. Sarkozy — a one-time Chirac protege — had secret bank accounts. The former President wrote to the investigating judges to inform them of his position, the statement said on Friday. Mr. Chirac reiterated his denial of wrongdoing in the Clearstream case. — AP

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