Ousted from his municipal duties for criticizing the Nice cultural policy, Henry-Jean Servat was a guest on the France Bleu Azur morning show. He expressed his desire to regain his delegation for animal welfare.
Fired by the mayor of Nice for, among other things, criticizing the municipal cultural policy, the journalist-commentator finds himself as a municipal councilor without any delegation. His critical comments on Richard Orlinski’s statues displayed around Nice, which he deemed “horrible,” or on the destruction of the TNN, which he did not favor, did not sit well with Christian Estrosi.
His remarks cost him his delegation to cinema on June 21, and then the one he cherished the most, his delegation to animal welfare, on June 22. He has not yet resigned from the municipal council. However, Marc Concas, deputy for Opera and Music, and Richard Chemla, deputy for Health, have inherited these roles respectively.
But Henry-Jean Servat is not ready to give up his fight for four-legged creatures. Considering his statements “not excessive,” he officially requests back his delegation from Christian Estrosi, who had dismissed him for a “breach of trust.”
“I Came to Nice for the Animals”
“I don’t want friends, I came for the animals,” he recalls on June 26. To continue his fight, he shows no resentment and extends a hand to the mayor of Nice. He even shares on his social networks that he has spoken with Robert Roux, delegate for Culture, and apologized to him.
Having come to Nice “neither for money, nor for fame, nor for photos,” he was keen to make the city a true bastion for animal protection and defense. “France believed that Nice could be a city where we would show the whole world a place on Earth where animals could be happy,” declares, disappointed, the friend of the stars to France Bleu Azur on June 26. Proud of his work in animal protection, he was even recognized by the Political and Animal Observatory, receiving a score of 20/20.
A Wave of Support
On social media, Henry-Jean Servat didn’t hesitate to share his astonishment in a series of tweets. Shocked by his dismissal for making remarks criticizing the policy of the majority he belongs to, he even dared to make a comparison with North Korea.
And it is on this same social media platform, the blue bird, that he receives a wave of support messages, which he describes as “a deluge.” Numerous animal advocacy organizations, the Animalist Party, and many internet users praised his efforts and criticized a decision considered “too authoritarian” by the municipality. The Collective Citizen 06 denounces a “Niçoise democracy: shut up and do as I say. Otherwise, it’s the door.”
The local political sphere also reacted. Éric Ciotti, the best enemy of Christian Estrosi, expressed his support for Henry-Jean Servat, a man who “says out loud what Nice’s elected officials think quietly.”
The group Retrouver Nice refers to him as a “victim of a frankness that honors him but apparently has no place in the Estrosi municipality.” Philippe Vardon and all the Zemmourian officials offer him to join their group. They offer him a position as a “related elected official” so that “his voice can continue to carry,” should he wish.
