This afternoon the management of De Toppers released a remarkable press release referring to the break up with Gerard Joling. The two remaining Toppers, Gordon and René Froger, want to look for a substitute to fill up Gerard�s place. Thus, the singers hope to ensure their forthcoming participation in the Eurovision Song Contest as well.

The management of De Toppers blames Gerard Joling for abandoning the other two members and therefore causing substantial damage. ‘He didn’t take all the interests into account by not following the agreements and stepping out like this’, according to the management.To reduce any further damage, an emergency meeting was planned last weekend.

The press release states: ‘We made several deals about the fifth anniversary of De Toppers in 2009 and we want to live up to that. Therefore we need to come up with a clear point of view on this matter. We can’t disappoint the hundred thousands of fans by cancelling our anniversary concerts in June. That’s why we discussed the option to ask another artist to replace Gerard.’The substitute of Joling should take over all further planned activities in 2009, like the docusoap, the participation in the Eurovision Song Contest, the anniversary concerts in June and a boatcruise with fans to finish the anniversary events.

Gordon and René Froger have somebody in mind already, but the name hasn’t been revealed yet. One of the reasons to look for a substitute is toensure their participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Broadcaster NOS hasn’t come up yet with an official reaction asthey want to know the name of the substitute first, before making a final decision.

Whether De Toppers go to Moscow or not, will become clear in the next few days. The view of the broadcaster involved is still to be confirmed, although they have spoken out to say that they consider De Toppers to consist of the original three men. They may yet consider a replacement does not conform to the agreed terms and decide to look for an alternative representative. esctoday.com will keep you informed as the story is still to be continued.