Philippe Argillier

Biography

Philippe Argillier was raised in a highly influential family on the French Riviera.

His maternal grandfather, who was Corsican and to whom he was very close, was a hero of the Resistance during the Second World War. He saved a great many Jewish families. As a police superintendent in Nice, he received from the Gestapo the names of the people who were to be deported to the concentration camps. At the risk of his own life, he would warn them or sometimes hide them.

His father, Commandant Argillier, played a very important role during the Second World War in Lebanon and Syria, where he was tasked with settling conflicts between the Bedouin tribes. A distinguished patriot, he was one of the first, and the youngest lieutenant, to answer General de Gaulle's appeal of 18 June 1940. For his brilliant military career, he received a great many distinctions: the Croix de guerre des TOE with palm, the Croix du combattant volontaire de la Résistance, the Croix du combattant, the Médaille de la France Libre, and Officer of the Legion of Honor. For more than 20 years, he chaired the association of the Free French Forces of the Alpes-Maritimes.

From 1979 to 1989, his father, alongside Jacques Medecin, member of parliament and mayor of the city of Nice, was appointed Deputy Mayor in charge of veterans and war victims. It was during this period that Philippe developed a great friendship with Mr Medecin, who became his unofficial mentor — impressed by Philippe's talents as a young entrepreneur, who at the age of 16 had already founded two karate clubs in Nice.

Philippe had discovered a passion for the martial arts, in which he earned his black belt. He practiced Shotokan Karate under the direction of his master, Sensei Taiji Kase.

Education and early years (1978–1983)

At 19, in 1978, he joined the army for a year in Marseille in the transport corps, where he finished first in his class in a special national defense program. He received military honors from the hands of his colonel.

In 1981, on Mr Medecin's advice, he left for Los Angeles and enrolled at UCLA in an intensive program to perfect his English, where he finished first in his class.

In 1982, Philippe was appointed director of security at the Palace in Los Angeles (Hollywood and Vine) — after New York's Studio 54, the most famous establishment in the United States. He trained and led a team of 20 people. In 1983, he founded Argillier Corporation.

Business expansion (1984–1992)

In 1984, he created the clothing line "Philippe Charles International", targeted at the Los Angeles Olympic Games. On a voluntary basis, he advised Mr Medecin on three major projects in Nice: the Palais des Congrès (inaugurated on 31 March 1984), the T2 airport terminal (inaugurated on 22 May 1987) and the Arénas (inaugurated on 14 February 1990, the first business center on the French Riviera, bringing together 350 companies and 7,000 employees).

In 1991, he set up a publishing house and a production company in a financial partnership with BMG ARIOLA Belgium. In 1992, he was at the head of several restaurants and nightlife venues, including the Empire, the largest gay nightclub in Belgium.

International career (1994–2015)

From 1994 to 1999, he returned to the United States and invested in several film production companies. He was one of the pioneers in creating a virtual stock-market marketplace of supply and demand.

In late 2000, a diplomat from a sovereign African country contacted him in Monaco. Impressed by his career, the President of that country offered him the role of private adviser to structure its economic expansion.

From 2001 to 2015, Philippe secured consulting contracts from several countries in tourism, telecommunications, energy and asset management. He became the private adviser to several presidents — "the man in the shadows". His fortune is said to amount to several billion euros, mainly in the form of debts owed by several sovereign African states.

Humanitarian commitment

On 11 December 2006, he decided to fund a reception unit for children who were victims, or suspected victims, of abuse at the Archet hospital, Nice University Hospital. Faced with the indifference of the institutions (the General Council, Nice City Hall, government ministries), he funded this innovative project alone, drawing on the use of debit and credit cards to contribute, at no additional cost, to humanitarian causes.

Encounters and personalities

He met His Holiness the Dalai Lama and, with the support of his prime minister Samdhong Rinpoche, drew up for him the various political and diplomatic steps to facilitate his return to Tibet.

He developed a close friendship with Michael Jackson in 2008, becoming his friend and confidant. Present at Neverland after Michael's passing, alongside Marlon Jackson, he is to this day the only person to know certain truths about the events of 2009.

He also spent time with Marla Maples (Donald Trump's former wife), Deepak Chopra, the Reverend Michael Beckwith, Apl.de.Ap of the Black Eyed Peas, and Mike Tyson.

Political commitment and the RDH

From January 2014 to the end of November 2018, he prepared his entry into public life. Following the events of 17 November 2018, he postponed his launch to 17 November 2019, the first anniversary of the Yellow Vests. He is writing an autobiography titled "Le Créancier" (The Creditor), revealing how governmental mechanisms work, to be published soon.

Today, through the RDH (Rassemblement des Droits de l'Homme) and the HRU (Human Rights Unity), Philippe is committed to enabling the people to live in a fair world. His mission is global.

Five factors drove him to step out of anonymity:

1. To restore social, financial, economic, diplomatic and humanitarian justice to France and to humanity.
2. His conscience — being no longer able to continue facilitating the running of the State while preserving his integrity in the face of governmental opacity.
3. His commitment to protecting the environment.
4. The French electoral earthquake: "Let no one merely claim to be a statesman — one is. One does not try to lead a country, one leads it. One does not promise reforms, one implements them."
5. The commitment to give the women and men of France what the women and men of France have given to France.