The Director General of Finland's social insurance agency Kela, Lasse Lehtonen, has not returned to Finland after an incident at Brussels Airport on Friday, the chair of Kela's board, Vertti Kiukas, has confirmed to Yle.
Lehtonen, who is currently on sick leave until Sunday, is not on the guest list for Saturday evening's Independence Day Reception at the Presidential Palace, and therefore "has no urgent reason to be in Finland," according to Kiukas.
Kela's board has brought forward a meeting to discuss confidence in Lehtonen's leadership. The session, originally scheduled for 16 December, will now take place on Monday.
Yle reporters were present to meet the last Brussels–Helsinki flight on Friday evening, but Lehtonen was not on the plane.
Escorted away from departure gate
The incident that has kept the Kela chief in Belgium occurred earlier on Friday at Brussels Airport, where Lehtonen attempted to board a flight to Helsinki. Police escorted him away from the gate shortly before departure.
Belgian police told Finnish News Agency STT that a Finnish citizen appeared "confused" and was unable to present his boarding pass at the gate. Officers said they held a short and calm discussion with him before accompanying him to the airport's first-aid station. According to police, Lehtonen intended to travel on a later flight.
Aura Salla (NCP), a Finnish MEP who was on the affected flight, said she believed Lehtonen's condition was poor enough that "he could not be allowed on the plane."
People close to Lehtonen told newspapers Ilta-Sanomat and Iltalehti that the airport incident was related to a health issue rather than intoxication.
Kela has not commented further on Lehtonen's current condition, citing his ongoing sick leave.
