The President of the General Council of Alpes-Maritimes, Eric Ciotti, conducted the traditional New Year’s ceremony for the agents of the General Council this Thursday. On this occasion, mayors, senators, elected officials, and 4,500 agents of the department’s General Council were invited to the Palais Nikaia in Nice. The program included a retrospective of 2014 and the new show by Noëlle Perna “Super Mado,” presented as a preview.
“It is a special moment that unites us and brings us together this evening in this Palais Nikaia […], a special moment at the beginning of January 2015. We are in a particularly grave context. Our country endured last week one of the most painful moments of its glorious history. France was attacked, 17 of our compatriots fell under the bullets of barbaric people without faith or law. This evening, how can we ignore this pain, this distress, this sorrow of the families […]. The question arose: should we be here tonight, should we organize this festive moment? Together, […] we decided with Christian Estrosi and Adolf Colrat that nothing will make the Republic back down. The Institutions that were attacked are standing tall. The best response we could give from Nice, from Alpes-Maritimes, from the General Council, is to be present […],” proclaimed Eric Ciotti proudly.
Right from the beginning of the speech, the terrorist attack that took place in the capital is mentioned. But France must show strength because it is “united and gathered,” according to the President of the General Council. Amidst this tragic context, the evening aims to be a bearer of hope and a symbol of the strength of the French Republic.
Given the circumstances, Eric Ciotti took time to thank “those who have represented the continuity and strength of the Republic in these circumstances, […] the security forces, Marcel Authier, the general controller and head of the national police in Alpes-Maritimes, Colonel Gaël Marchand, head of the national gendarmerie, the special intelligence forces, the elite units of the national gendarmerie GIGN, as well as the municipal police […]”.
“I would like for us not to forget the 17 French who fell, as well as Hervé Gourdel”
In tribute to the victims, Eric Ciotti invited everyone present to stand and observe a minute of silence. He also emphasized the importance of this national unity climate and lamented the disrespectful behavior of some schoolchildren during the minute of silence in memory of the victims last week. “I was shocked; I was […] hurt by images where children in our schools disrupted the national tribute to the victims of the attacks. It is a concern as well as a wound. We must restore the School of the Republic. […] Today, there are children who detest, who hate France. We must not accept it. We need to reinstall the values of the Republic in schools, teach respect, restore authority to teachers, reinforce the power of those who run the institutions. Our future is being played out today on the school benches of France.”
After these tributes, a video clip was shown to thank and congratulate many people who made the “great moments” of 2014 possible in Alpes-Maritimes. Sport, culture, health, security, solidarity, education, heritage, architecture, medicine, and research are among the fields where the Department excelled.
