The visit has set fire to the Republicans: François-Xavier Bellamy visited the Hérault on Wednesday, October 30 and met with Bézier Mayor Robert Ménard, whose city has been affected by the recent storms, reported Le Figaro.
During his trip, the MEP also spoke with the Mayor of Frontignan and others, but it is his meeting with Robert Ménard who seems to have given the leadership of his party cold sweats. The entourage of Christian Jacob – new president of the Republicans – told Libération that “François-Xavier Bellamy is free to do what he wants but if he had abstained, it would have been better”.
Christian Jacob is less severe in his remarks to Le Figaro but believes that “no one is fooled by the political and media exploitation that Robert Ménard makes of this visit while François-Xavier Bellamy is doing his job as a member of the European Parliament”.
Bellamy sees no harm in this meeting. “I do not imagine that we can push militant sectarianism to the point of asking the people whom they voted for before coming to help them,” François-Xavier Bellamy told Le Figaro.
“Once again, I came to talk about flood prevention. There is a European directive that has existed on the subject for years. It is important for me to see how it is applied. Including in Béziers, the most affected city in the department that has suffered more than 4 million uninsurable damages!” added the MEP. In addition, he recalled that ” the minister herself came to Béziers three days ago”.
However, according to Le Figaro, the meeting between François-Xavier Bellamy and Robert Ménard could be the sign of a deeper discomfort within the party, which has been relying heavily on the municipal elections.
Fearing the rapprochement between local militants and the National Rally (or with the Republic on the move, LREM), federations have already excluded members who were on union lists with elected representatives of other parties.
The issue does not arise for François-Xavier Bellamy who believes that “there is a question about the identity of the right, its project, its competitors. But do not confuse everything”.
He concluded: “If we do politics only according to the labels of our interlocutors, we are lost.”