Even if the news sometimes makes it seem improbable, politics is the art of the possible. How else could we imagine that the Minister of the Interior, Manuel Valls, and the mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, could share the same opinion?
And yet… If the Minister declares that we must return to more authority “which is neither right nor left but a republican principle,” the mayor of Nice immediately responds by implementing a policy for managing the parks and gardens of his city that perfectly applies this principle.
The two see no dichotomy between individual freedom and public order; on the contrary, they are two sides of the same coin. The principle is simple: Everyone has the right to live as they wish while respecting the rights of others.
It is for this reason, and in response to an increasing number of complaints from citizens, that a new policy will be implemented at the end of the summer to preserve the parks and gardens, especially those in the city center that are the most frequented, from the behavioral deviations of vagrants who too often make them the scene of their incivilities to the dismay of those who visit them for leisure or to enjoy the play areas for the little ones.
A new regulation, a specialized brigade for prevention, deterrence, and intervention actions, fences, and thermal cameras (that operate with human heat) for video surveillance and intruder detection under all circumstances will be the new spearheads against all disturbances to others, with special attention to noise pollution and any act of unsanitation.
The future Promenade des Paillons is intended to become a place of life, an area of conviviality, and a true showcase of the city for its residents and guests.
And this, above all, to the benefit of ordinary people who cannot afford private alternatives at high prices!
Naturally, during the presentation of this plan, Christian Estrosi could not help but criticize the inadequacy of government policy, but all this was not surprising. At the end of the day, it is indifference, not criticism, that is the worst form of contempt, is it not?
Reaction from Patrick Allemand, president of the municipal opposition group Changing Times:
Security in public parks and gardens: Estrosi left seniors and children defenseless for five and a half years!
The Deputy Mayor of Nice announced the creation of a brigade for public gardens and parks.
With a provocative formula, instructions to “disturb, harass,” the mayor turns what is merely the duty of a city’s first magistrate into yet another media affair to mask his real inaction.
In fact, what the Mayor proposes is nothing more than what several generations of people from Nice experienced during the time of Jacques Médecin: The return of municipal guards to public gardens and parks, a category of jobs that were very necessary but eliminated under Jacques Peyrat.
This step backward shows that nothing replaces human presence in preventing incivilities, and certainly not fences.
It took Christian Estrosi five and a half years to realize this and take the necessary measures to restore security and tranquility in our public parks.
Five and a half years is a long time for a mayor who boasts of supposedly listening to his population.
In five and a half years, how many elderly people were assaulted, how many mothers were bothered with their children due to the Mayor of Nice’s inaction?
