While presenting his program for a second five-year term as President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron put forward the idea of a merger between the Nice Côte d’Azur Metropolis and the Alpes-Maritimes department. An idea that does not please its local opponents.
Emmanuel Macron knows how to get people talking about his candidacy in the south of France… During the press conference he gave this Thursday, March 17 in Aubervilliers, the President and candidate for his succession, announced thathe merger between the Nice Côte d’Azur Metropolis and the Alpes-Maritimes department was possible.
He was talking about the eventuality where metropolises would like “build new balances with the rest of their territory”. “I am attached to the principle of differentiation which allows to have slightly different local freedoms”, did he declare. And to continue:
Perhaps the Metropolis of Nice is destined to merge with the department. It is a project that is far from being uninteresting. It is also carried by the president of the metropolis. If he manages to convince one or two of his colleagues, it’s a real simplification project.
Concretely, what is a merger?
To illustrate the feasibility of this project, the candidate of La République en Marche (LREM) recalled the example of the urban community of Lyon, which merged in 2015 with the Rhône department.
The merger of departmental services and projects would only take place within the metropolitan area. As a reminder, it brings together 51 municipalities which represent half of the population of the Alpes-Maritimes and nearly one-third of the area of this territory.
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The metropolis would therefore recover the skills of the department, i.e.:
- social action,
- college management,
- the departmental roads or the fire department.
But apart from the tterritory of the metropolis, it would always be the department of the Alpes-Maritimes which would manage these subjects.
What do local politicians think?
The first concerned, the president of the Departmental Council of the Alpes-Maritimes Charles-Ange Ginesy was quick to make his disagreement known after the president’s announcement. “The Alpes-Maritimes are still not for sale”, he wrote in a press release.
Emmanuel Macron is definitely incorrigible! (…) Once again, he thus administers the proof of his profound ignorance of the France of the territories.
Charles-Ange Ginesy, President of the Departmental Council.
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According to him, this merger would not bring “nothing, if not to weaken other intermunicipalities which work perfectly, supported by the Departmental Council”. The Republic holds thanks to the “couple municipalities-departments”, according to Charles-Ange Ginesy, it is “the most solid foundation, the only one to resist democratic disenchantment”. He accuses this project of being “disconnected, bureaucratic and Parisian project”.
Eric Ciotti, particularly concerned as vice-president of the department, was also very virulent. In a tweet, he announces that “the future of the Alpes-Maritimes will not be decided bonneteau* macronien on a background of political grub where betrayal is rewarded. Those who have this dark purpose will find me before them!”.
* The bonneteau is a game of money, a game of dupes of the order of the scam Editor’s note.
Christian Estrosipresident of the Nice Côte d’Azur metropolisdid not react directly.
On the other hand, when Emmanuel Macron made this announcement, he repeated his support for the candidate LREM, calling on the people of Nice to commit “more than ever for the re-election of Emmanuel Macron”.
For the moment, there is nothing to confirm that this merger is a very concrete project.
However, its mention during the presentation of the program and the rapprochement between Christian Estrosi and Emmanuel Macron lead one to think that it is a topic they have already discussed. Them, whom we already know to be so close.
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