France: Mayor gives Nazi salute in city council.

Nazi France? Not really, say exasperated France.

Accused of forming an “alliance with the far right” in order to get elected, Villeneuve-Saint-Georges Mayor Philippe Gaudin, exasperated by the accusations, gave a Villeneuve-Saint-Georges and shouted “Heil” in the middle of the city council meeting on Saturday, April 20.

Emmanuelly Gougougnan-Zadigue, a dissident deputy from the majority, announced the filing of a complaint, while Thiaba Bruni, an opposition councilor (EELV-Greens), called for the mayor’s dismissal.

The last meeting of the City Council of Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, a town of 31,000 inhabitants in Val-de-Marne, got completely out of hand on Saturday, April 20. According to Le Parisien, around 10 a.m., after some tense exchanges, particularly over the municipal budget, which had not yet been voted on, right-wing Mayor Philippe Gaudin lost his temper. Accused by environmentalist-elect Birol Biyik of having “formed an alliance with the far right to take over the city in 2020,” he replied, “I don’t want to hear these things here anymore; they are unbearable. I’m giving you a warning and suspending the meeting!

Problem: Instead of leaving the room, the mayor continued to lose his temper and even gave the room a Nazi salute, shouting “Heil.” This attitude was “inexcusable” in the eyes of Emmanuelly Gougougnan-Zadigue, a dissident deputy of the majority in charge of finances, who announced that he would file a complaint. Opposition councilor Thiaba Bruni (Europe Écologie-Les Verts) promised to “take the matter to the prefect and the prime minister to have the mayor removed from office.

I apologize 200%.

After the scene, Philippe Gaudin immediately apologized, according to Le Parisien. “I understand I reacted badly; I apologize 200%,” he admitted, ten minutes after the meeting resumed. Not enough to calm the opposition. Marc Lecuyer, opposition councilor, said, “It’s despicable.” And Kristel Niasme (LR), former deputy mayor, added, “This behavior must not go unpunished. It is not a matter of gratitude, but of our city’s honor.”

Eventually calm returned to the Council, which nevertheless managed to vote on the budget. The result? The administrative bill was rejected with 23 votes in favor and 15 against. With the deadline for adopting the 2024 budget, normally set for April 15, now well past, the next Council meeting was set for Thursday, April 25, but the agenda did not include a discussion of the budget. From now on, the prefecture could simply refer the matter to the regional audit office. Even worse, the state might place Villeneuve under surveillance if the elected officials fail to approve the draft budget.