French president Emmanuel Macron visited the island of Mayotte, which was devastated by cyclone Chido, and received a hostile reception from the local population, who, like others in mainland France, believe that he should resign.
Initially on the island only for a short time, Macron decided to extend his stay as a sign of “respect and consideration,” as he explained to the press.
During his visit, Macron was greeted by booing and heated slogans such as: “Resign!,” “You’re talking rubbish,” and “Water, water, water!”
Since the fall of Michel Barnier’s government at the beginning of December, calls for the president of the republic to resign have been multiplying from all sides.
Faced with the hostility of the islanders, who accuse him of only caring about their lives when the cyclone hits, the president tried to defend himself, constantly interrupted by boos: “What you’ve been going through for the last six days is unbearable, but I’m not the cyclone! I’m not responsible,” he exclaimed. Macron also accused the crowd of being infiltrated by militants. The president appeared febrile and unsettled by events, incapable of facing up to the difficulties with a clear head.
The provisional death toll of 31 in the archipelago could be much higher, the president said. Estimates are very difficult, given the problems of communication and access to the most remote corners of the archipelago.
Natural disaster measures must be put in place to help the stricken island. The immediate aim is to rehouse as many people as possible and to enable the school year to start on January 13th, at the end of the summer holidays—Mayotte being in the southern hemisphere, its calendar has been shifted.
Prime Minister François Bayrou, who appeared on France 2’s national news programme for a progress report, estimated that it might take two years to rebuild Mayotte. 80,000 homes would have to be rebuilt. He explained that the scale of the disaster was even greater than the eruption of the Montagne Pelée volcano in Martinique in 1902, which is still remembered in France and overseas as one of the worst natural disasters in French history.
