In the midst of an ongoing political and social crisis, Emmanuel Macron heads Monday evening to the French to show them his vision for the rest of his presidential term after approving the pension reform. The President will deliver his speech at 20:00 GMT (18:00 GMT), to be transmitted by major television networks.
And his circles explained that “the president would like, on this occasion, to be able to send a message to the French, at a time when this stage on reforming the retirement system ends, inevitably leaving anger in the souls and in the hearts.”
However, the task seems daunting to fix the situation after an acute social crisis that has been going on for three months, and while the executive authority is suffering from the consequences of its use of Article 49.3 of the French constitution, which allows the approval of a bill without a vote on it by deputies, and at a time when it is still deprived of a majority in the National Assembly.
And with the publication of the reform decree in the Official Gazette, a few hours after the Constitutional Council approved most of it, opponents denounced a new provocation.
“We can’t get over it,” said Laurent Berge, Secretary General of the French Democratic Confederation of Labor, warning of severe “resentment” in the business community and ruling out any resumption of talks with Macron in the near future.
The head of the largest French trade union confirmed that “the business community is still in shock… It is out of the question that we go to talks as if nothing had happened.”
The Federation of French Trade Unions decided not to respond to an invitation from the president to meet him at the Elysee Palace on Tuesday. Messages from opponents of the reform spread on social networks calling for banging on pots and organizing gatherings in front of municipal centers or local administrations in conjunction with the president’s speech in the evening.
On the other hand, Laurent Berger rejected an invitation threatening to disrupt the 2024 Olympic Games, with the spread of the hashtag # No Draws, No Olympic Games on Twitter. He said, “The Olympic Games are supposed to be a festival, it is supposed to be a magical station for those who love sports, and therefore it is not possible to make this kind of threat or take this kind of movement during the Olympic Games.”
strength review
Macron’s circles, who receive ministers and officials from the majority in the afternoon, reported that he wants to “draw horizons for the coming weeks and months” for the French and “intends to set the parameters of the workshops” that he intends to take part in.
She added that the aim of the speech was “to reaffirm the direction he is adopting, republicanism, full employment, re-industrialization and daily progress, but also to give coherence to his work as a whole.”
It is then scheduled that he will leave the presidential palace for “discussions with the French”, and he may make a field visit on Wednesday or Thursday on the subject of education.
The federation is seeking to make a show of strength on May 1, the traditional gathering of workers.
The new Secretary-General of the General Confederation of Workers CGT, Sophie Binet, called for a “historic popular tide,” while Laurent Berger wished, “On May 1, we will achieve a resounding success in terms of the number of demonstrators in the street.”
In the event that forces unite on May 1, this will be a precedent since 2002, a few days after the far-right candidate, Jean-Marie Le Pen, moved on April 21 to the second round of the presidential elections in a precedent in France.
Meanwhile, the four unions representing the French railway company are calling for a “day of expressing the anger of the railway workers” on Thursday.
“calm the country”
What makes it more difficult to re-move things is that the executive authority and the presidential majority emerge shaky from the crisis.
And Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne announced Saturday, “We are determined to move quickly,” expressing at the same time her intention to “calm the country.”
And the leader of the National Rally Party (far-right), Marine Le Pen, said that “the prime minister was completely burned, and the government lost its credibility,” considering that the president has three options, either organizing a referendum, dissolution, or resignation.
And it seems unlikely to form a coalition with the right, and the head of the presidential “Ennahda” party, Stéphane Sigournet, explained that such a possibility assumes the existence of “a program and a leader, and the Republican Party has neither a program nor a leader.”
Other officials from the majority, such as the head of the centrist Modem party, Francois Bayrou, warned against any turn “to the left or to the right.”
An adviser to the president said: “Does the absence of an absolute majority prevent us from carrying out reforms? It is clear that the answer is no.”
France 24/AFP
