FOLLOWING last Sunday’s political earthquake, while Emmanuel Macron takes office as president of France today, subsequent tremors are shaking the country almost on an hour-to-hour basis.

This is for the first time that a candidate who was backed by no political party enters the Elysйe Palace. At age 39, Macron is also the youngest head of the state, the so far record-holder Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte who was elected in 1848 being one year older. Macron is also the first president whose party Forward March! has no seats in the parliament.

The new president has less than a month to transform this zero-seat fragility into a position of power when the legislative elections are held on June 11 and 18. If he flops, he will remain a figurehead president signing ordinances and probably being at the mercy of the Republicans who are most likely to retain parliamentary majority.

If the Republicans fail in this, Macron will be forced to seek unending compromises with the Socialist Party which had actually brought him into political limelight as finance minister and which he today disowns.

The outgoing president made this point clear to the TV cameras by his repeated gestures during the Second World War victory ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe last Monday. Franзois Hollande put his arm a number of times around Macron’s shoulders and waist and once tenderly caressed his neck in a father-to-son like nod, saying: “I’ll be by your side in case you need me.”

Macron’s election promises that brought him a huge majority (67 pc) of the votes remain nevertheless obscure. He speaks not only of revising labour, business and financial laws but also of overhauling the entire political system of the country.

However the media, especially TV channels competing with each other in projecting a movie-star image of Macron, appear to miss one simple point. His success is not the result of popularity but of a rather disparate pact between the rival Republican and Socialist parties in order to defeat Marine Le Pen who had represented the far-right National Front and was heading towards an easy victory in the second round on May 7.

Also, not to be forgotten is an event that quite providentially turned the entire presidential campaign in Macron’s favour. It was a revelation by the weekly Canard Enchainй that the Republican candidate Franзois Fillon’s wife Penelope was paid for more than 15 years a generous salary at the taxpayer’s expense for a job that was purely fictitious.

The scoop brought down Fillon who was heading towards a clean sweep in the first round, well ahead of the Socialist candidate. Nobody had thought at the time Macron would make it to the second round.

As things stand today, the Republicans are mired in total confusion and the Socialist Party is already split into at least three different movements opposed to each other. The National Front too is in tatters and may change its agenda, presumably even its name.

The power transfer ceremony that is taking place at the Elysйe Palace, probably right at the moment as you are reading these lines, is in fact no more than a ritual and Macron’s real test will be to win favours of the future 577 parliamentarians.

Macron who repeatedly talks of “the exhausted and forsaken plight of French politics” and promises to transform it into “a dynamic force”, has so far only succeeded in changing the name of his own movement Forward March! to Forward Republican March!

To add colour to this chaotic, even frenzied situation, a number of pop magazines are reporting that Brigitte Macron, 25 years older than her husband, wants to play a more active role and not just stay at the side of the president as the First Lady.

The writer is a journalist based in Paris.

ZafMasud@gmail.com

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2017

Opinion

Editorial

‘Source of terror’
Updated 29 Mar, 2024

‘Source of terror’

It is clear that going after militant groups inside Afghanistan unilaterally presents its own set of difficulties.
Chipping in
29 Mar, 2024

Chipping in

FEDERAL infrastructure development schemes are located in the provinces. Most such projects — for instance,...
Toxic emitters
29 Mar, 2024

Toxic emitters

IT is concerning to note that dozens of industries have been violating environmental laws in and around Islamabad....
Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...