Geneva’s former State Councillor Philippe Joye dies
Published: Thursday, Mar 28th 2024, 16:30
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Former Geneva State Councillor Philippe Joye (CVP) passed away on Tuesday at the age of 82. The architect, who had been suffering from an illness for several years, was a member of the government for one legislative term between 1993 and 1997 and headed the Department of Public Works.
Joye's political career began in the Grand Council in 1985. From 1988 to 1993, the Christian Democrat was once again a member of parliament before being elected to the State Council.
Four years later, private matters caught up with him and he was forced by his party to renounce his candidacy for a second term. Joye had admitted to having an "ambiguous relationship" with a minor and to defaulting on payments from his architectural firm.
Change of party to MCG
In 2013, Joye switched to the Mouvement Citoyens Genevois (MCG) and was elected to the Grand Council. As he was in poor health, he was only a member of the cantonal parliament for one year. In April 2015, he was elected to the municipal council of Vernier, but ultimately resigned.
"He was a remarkable visionary, but also a master builder who led many projects to success," said MCG President François Baertschi. And: "In particular, he managed to build the Plan-les-Ouates bypass very quickly, which relieved traffic in the city center".
"Philippe Joye had a high level of political and technical expertise," emphasized Baertschi. He was not always a prophet in his own country: his major project, a transport link across the port of Lake Geneva, was rejected in a referendum in 1996.
"He was a man full of friendliness and openness towards others. He had a collection of ties with the image of Babar on them, which earned him his nickname," Baertschi recalls.
Separated from twin
Joye experienced a tragic story in his childhood: when he was born in a Fribourg hospital, his twin brother was swapped with another baby. The mistake was only discovered six years later and the two children were returned to their biological parents.
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