Patrick Luxembourger Photo The Week
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The outgoing mayor of Terville is a surprise candidate in Thionville. Declared at the very last moment when he had announced to withdraw from public life, Patrick Luxembourger poses recourse for right-wing voters if a “case”, which he evokes without denouncing it publicly, broke out and splashed by ricochet the other right candidate, the outgoing mayor Pierre Cuny.
You are now a candidate for Thionville. Why ?
“I cannot accept that a ballot is manipulated because information has been withheld. Now I know from having checked it, that journalistic investigations have been underway for months on a case which affects the whole of the Moselle, and in particular the elected officials of Metz and Thionville. I also noticed that Bertrand Mertz had regularly asked questions in city council (about a form of omnipresence of a real estate developer, note): either he apologizes to Pierre Cuny, or he does things until end. But it would be unacceptable for the ballot to be stolen from voters. This nameless dishonesty and seriousness makes me hysterical. “
If you have things to say, why not say them?
“Because it is not my role, it is that of the press and justice. What is going on does not concern me, it is not my business. That we are faced with a non-election on the other hand, that concerns me and that concerns the politician that I am. This is my job and here I am again in political life when I announced to withdraw from it (for a time at least, note) a few weeks ago. “
But then you go there to denounce or to win?
“I have every intention of winning and carrying a project for Thionville. And the feedback we have received on the ground since the announcement of my candidacy is extremely positive and encouraging. Many say to me: “Now we know who to vote for!”, They also tell me that if I do in Thionville what I did in Terville, it will be perfect. “
You completed your list in 36 hours you say, it seems impossible.
“We doubted too. I had been asked for a year to apply for Thionville, and I refused. Until the end I believed in my political retirement. As time went on and the article on this case did not appear, I told myself that we could not not go there. With the hard core, we met on Tuesday 25 to make our decision. Wednesday evening the list was closed, he stayed on Thursday to complete the formalities and drop off the list at 5 p.m. Believe me, if it had been premeditated I would have allowed a little margin, to know how easily the lists are revoked. “
Was there a trigger in the choice to present yourself?
“My 20 year old son took me in the dark and said, ‘Dad, you’ve been teaching me courage for years, what are you doing there?’ He put me on the wall, I think it must have played. Many tell me that I achieved a stroke of genius but no, it is not premeditated. By cons from the moment I decided to go, I go! In boar mode. “
Isn’t that timing displeasing you?
“I’m in the starting blocks (says the one who chooses a chamomile at 11:30 am, because he already has too many coffees behind him, editor’s note). It is an extraordinary challenge and this rhythm corresponds rather well to my nature indeed. It’s a sprint, and I’m never as good as in the toughest situations. “
Imagine you win, are you ready?
“I am the last founding member of the agglomeration still in activity, I have 25 years of experience and results, I know Thionville like my pocket for having managed it (as general manager of services from 1995 to 1999) and I know the news through the metropolitan area where I sit. The big advantage with me is that five minutes after the election, I can start working. “
So you have a list, no program yet?
“On the list, I do have a thunderous team. Many strong personalities, especially women and who are not there to do the figuration, like number 2: Sandrine Jean, figure of the trade in Thionville (she manages a cafe, note). People who have never had political responsibilities, with fiery temperaments. We also find Caroline Hein (she was Anne Grommerch’s best friend, she is currently a delegated councilor for health and disability for Pierre Cuny, editor’s note) or Laurent Krob (Les Républicains secretary for the riding and municipal councilor for Pierre Cuny , editor’s note). Yves Clément, in 11th position on the list, was also in Pierre Cuny’s team (and is one of those who relayed the “affair” in question, editor’s note). “
And on the program?
“It is not written yet, of course, but it won’t be a problem. It is easy to build a program in a few days. In addition to my knowledge of the function and the municipality, I know the issues very well since they are at the heart of the concerns of the agglomeration. As such, and since many powers have been transferred to it, it would be absurd to advance a detailed program without knowing the redefinition of the urban community after elections. I can already tell you that there will be surprises: one of my qualities is creativity in public management. “
During our meeting in January, where you explained by a + b why you are withdrawing from Tervillois public life, you mentioned in particular a scale of the commune which no longer matched your ambitions. Do you see Thionville as this ideal place of expression?
“I sincerely mourned my public life that lived up to my ambitions. I never thought it would happen like that, it’s a crazy story. I have writing projects in progress, I was setting up an investment fund which was only waiting for the end of the elections to be launched. Thionville was not on the program, now that it is, it is completely. “
What happens if you win?
“If on 22 March the mayor of Metz is called François Grosdidier and that of Thionville Patrick Luxembourger, it will shake up the Moselle landscape, including in our relations with the Luxembourgers. Starting with the subject of transport: you can be sure that I will not leave things as they are. If I were to win, things would happen in Thionville, and that this summer. “
And for progress in surfing, what did you plan to do after retiring from public life?
“It is not incompatible. I intend to rely on my team, through an innovative managerial experience. Of course when decisions have to be made, I will make them, but I will reproduce in Thionville the collective functioning that worked in Terville. It is important for an elected official to stay grounded in reality, and mine also goes through a surfboard. “
What if you lose?
“So I go back to the life I had planned. Without regret. “
You have announced that you will retire in the second round if you are not in front of Pierre Cuny in the first. Why ?
“I don’t want Bertrand Mertz to win. I do not have bad relations with him, but I have the right not to wish that his project is that of Thionville. “
In Terville you were the rectifier, in Thionville you hear the truth coming out. Is it your destiny to play superheroes or white knights?
“In Thionville, I want to shatter all the life and energy that exists. The image of the work done in Terville argues in my favor, people say that they do not buy a cat in a bag. “
” The case “
If, like many others, Patrick Luxembourger does not want to speak about it publicly, he justifies his candidacy by the existence of a “Business”, he said without putting forward any evidence, which would involve a property developer and elected officials from various municipalities. Some refer to the sale of land for the benefit of the promoter at prices lower than the market, still others refer to the participation of elected officials, in particular in a trip that the said promoter would have organized on a private basis.
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