Christian Estrosi and Éric Ciotti solemnly opened these three days of Marianne debates. The Deputy Mayor of Nice expressed his gratitude to the weekly magazine for accepting the city’s invitation. “Organizing a discussion on ethics and money… in Nice. Some might have smiled, or even been a bit taken aback.” He recalls the history of the Azurean city, stating that the city has not always had this bling-bling aspect. Eric Ciotti shares the same viewpoint and believes that this debate “gathers participants who are more commendable than the others.”
For the much-awaited major debate at the Mediterranean University Center, Minister of the Interior Manuel Valls and Jean-François Kahn, a last-minute replacement for the ill Jacques Julliard, offered their ideas on ethics and the exercise of power.
The Minister of the Interior believes that “democracies are marked by the distrust of the people. And this can only concern politicians.”
“Power does not necessarily have a good image in the eyes of the French today, but it is true that its exercise is essential. Making promises based on facts and no longer making empty promises. Not succumbing to the ‘crazy finance, money rules,’ navigating between what exists and what does not.”
For Jean-François Kahn, it is essential to put humans back at the center of concerns. He cites Croesus, King of Lydia, by his river Pactolus, saying that “Croesus could have been from Nice” without any malice.
“What are tomorrow’s realities if not today’s utopias?” A debate summarized in one sentence.
Spinoza writes “Ethics.” Let’s say that the link between politicians and the financial world is still inseparable.
