We were used to barons from the local political world, even though this time only Christian Estrosi could have claimed it before declaring himself unavailable. Here’s a surprise, indeed a big and especially unexpected one.
Frédérique Vidal, a university professor, scientist by training, president of the University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis, and Vice-President of the University of the Côte d’Azur, will join Prime Minister Edouard Philippe’s government as Minister of Higher Education, Research, and Innovation, an inseparable trilogy for the construction and dissemination of knowledge in the 21st century.
The right person in the right position? – one might wonder while humming the famous American saying.
Frédérique Vidal is certainly a competent individual who knows well the field she will be responsible for; she has a solid experience from her five years at the helm of a higher education institution.
Her appointment, also a surprise for her as she was traveling abroad – this is the version circulating in the Nice academic community – is part of the assurances the new President of the Republic wants to give to the public opinion: the time for change has indeed come, and political labels (with some exceptions) will no longer be the primary criterion for selecting individuals for public positions.
The Mayor of Nice and President of the Metropolis, Christian Estrosi, warmly welcomed this appointment: “It is a source of pride for Nice, for the Alpes-Maritimes, and for the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. Frédérique Vidal has managed to shine the image of the University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis beyond our territory; she has managed to rally the collectivities, partners, and businesses around her and bring a new vision to these collaborations.”
For once, in agreement with his nemesis, Patrick Allemand also highlighted the qualities and merits of the new minister.
