Former Parler CEO John Matze has launched a GoFundMe for his personal legal expenses after his abrupt exit from the beleaguered social media platform, claiming that Parler has indicated they may not indemnify him from the cost of a Congressional investigation into the platform.
“I have launched a GoFundMe in order help my family through the Congressional investigation which Parler has indicated they may not indemnify me from as well as the legal fees associated with my departure of Parler,” Matze wrote on Twitter and Telegram Monday, accompanied by a link to his GoFundMe page.
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“I am now in litigation with Parler and others over what happened next,” Matze’s GoFundMe page states. “I also am likely heading into a congressional investigation into Parler, and it is uncertain whether Parler will indemnify me for the inevitable costs of defending this investigation.. I believe in transparency and Congress has asked for information that the public also wants to know. I plan to cooperate fully with Congress and tell the truth, but with legal counsel.”
Matze reportedly was stripped of his shares in Parler shortly after being fired, and was then harshly criticized by Parler shareholder Dan Bongino.
“If he wants to get into a battle over here of narratives, he is going to lose, because there is this thing getting in the way of that story he keeps telling and it’s called the truth,” Bongino said of Matze. “I’m really pissed off right now because that is absolutely not what happened. The relationship between Parler and the CEO did not work out because the CEO’s vision is not ours. Is everybody clear on that?”
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The Congressional investigation into Parler, based on dubious claims that platform users “incited an insurrection” on January 6, has been criticized for its nakedly partisan intent by commentators across the political spectrum.