#ronald pasterk

[thoughtlessarse]

The prospect of Ronald Plasterk leading the Dutch Cabinet as the next prime minister was becoming less and less likely amid increasing pressure related to a scandal involving the former interior minister. Plasterk's candidacy to become prime minister is "no longer tenable," sources close to the new PVV, VVD, NSC and BBB political coalition told broadcaster NOS. At best, the scandal casts a dark shadow on Plasterk's management of the patent process involving a new cancer treatment. At worst, Plasterk could potentially face claims of scientific fraud that led to him enriching himself. Aside from more recent reporting about the row between Plasterk and NSC leader Pieter Omtzigt, the science research scandal already surfaced weeks ago in an article written by NRC. Since then, the newspaper has written several follow-up pieces that call into question Plasterk's decisions regarding the patent. The current phase is "the highest alarm level," sources told NOS. Plasterk, a microbiologist and politician, reportedly earned millions of euros on a patent for which he claimed sole credit. The patient application filed in the Untied States could soon be granted, but it could highlight mistakes made during the procedure. This could refer the patent worthless, which could then trigger lawsuits filed against Plasterk by various stakeholders, patent expert Koos Rasser told NRC. The research is connected to Plasterk's time leading the Amsterdam Medical Center (AMC), the teaching hospital of the University of Amsterdam. This was before the hospital was rebranded as the Amsterdam University Medical Center in a partnership with the Vrije Universiteit. Plasterk grew wealthier from the patents associated with the therapy, but neither the hospital nor the researcher involved, oncology professor Kees Punt, benefitted from the arrangement.

continue reading

He was Wilders' first choice, so it can't be that bad that he's no longer in the running.

I have vague recollections of Plasterk working in the same lab building where I worked in Leiden around 1984, at least I think it was him.