All the stuff you never knew you needed to know about life in rural France.....and all the stuff the books and magazines won't tell you.

Sunday 11 October 2009

Son of Sarkozy scoots to the top

La DefenceImage by Niklas Jakobsen via Flickr

Nepotism has a long history and a great future ahead of it, so Sarkozy junior canot be blamed for going with the flow and allowing himself to be put forward as the next head of the body which administers La Defence, the modern business centre of Paris. Sarkozy senior cannot be blamed for pushing forward his progeny...after all, he thinks that in the aftermath of the banking crisis he can make Paris, not London, the business centre of Europe, so what better than to have someone reliable in place to carry on the good work he did himself in the period when he ran EPAD, as the body is known.

There are a few problems with public opinion as Sarkozy junior, Jean, is only in his early twenties, is still studying law while his only political experience has been two years as a councillor in well heeled Neuilly, where his father was mayor before him. There is further depth to the agenda, in that Sarkozy is trying to bring about electoral change by developing a 'Greater Paris' region in which his party, the UMP, would have the advantage, thus breaking the hegemony of the left wing, the PS, in Paris and the Ile de France, and the proposed appointment of his son is seen as part of the scheme.

As young Sarkozy turns aside criticism by asking to be judged on his acts, I have decided to do just that and I find him wanting. In 2005, someone riding his scooter ran into the back of a car in Paris. The driver had nothing but problems in pursuing what was, after all, a banal traffic case, simply because the owner of the scooter was Jean Sarkozy, son of the then interior minister and, oddly enough was a law student as far back as that. I know French higher education goes on a bit, but is there a chance he is a bit dense? Or preoccupied? Or something?
The driver, Monsieur Bellouti, was the victim of threatening telephone calls and dirty tricks, notably by the Sarkozy family lawyer, Maitre Herzog, who impersonated Monsieur Bellouti's lawyer to get information from Monsieur Bellouti's insurance company. This is the same Maitre Herzog who is representing President Sarkozy in the Clearstream affair, so I hope de Villepin has warned his advisors to keep a close eye on the telephone calls.
When the case came to court, Jean Sarkozy said he was at a lecture at the time and that he had not lent his scooter to anyone, upon which resounding declaration of innocence, the court awarded Sarkozy junior damages of 2,000 Euros, and announced that Monsieur Belloutti had brought a malicious prosecution.

If Sarkozy junior will go to these lengths to avoid a trivial insurance claim, then for my money he is not the man to have in charge of a vital public enterprise where there is potentially a lot more at stake. Potential investors beware! Make a claim against EPAD on the grounds that their water features caused your window frames to rust and don't be surprised if you have the goons at the door.......and Maitre Herzog on the telephone.


There was a sort of happier ending for Monsieur Bellouti which you can see here.
http://real-france.blogspot.com/2009/04/sarkozys-scooter.html
or if the link doesn't work, it is a post from shortly after the blog began.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]





10 comments:

  1. In Spain this is so rife there's a special word for it, "enchufe" (someone plugs you in). I had a boss who was one of these. It was not a happy experience, and leads me to suspect that giving his son the post will be a hinderance rather than a help to Sarkosky's ambitions. Even if he does what my boss's bosses then did, which was to employ a circus of other bosses with responsibilities for all of the things my boss was supposed to be doing. Chaos reigned.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Pueblo girl, I think giving your relative a job is a bit like giving them the role of the Queen as head of the armed forces....so that no one else can have it and start forming factions.
    Sarkozy should watch himself a bit...the regional elections are coming up and while people will turn out for a national election he might find that some of his supporters sit on their hands at the regionals given all the fuss about Mitterand, Sarkozy junior, Sarkozy himself being filmed laughing and cracking jokes at a memorial ceremony at a resistance cemetery, the proposed electoral boundary changes....people are grumpy enough with things generally as it is.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I knew he had wriggled out of the scooter problem, but had no idea at all (hadn't read your previous post on Jean and the scooter incident) that Bellouti had received threatening phone calls. It's crazy that he could take this job, the guy leaving is 65 and he's 23!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bellouti had a really hard time, according to his support group, who raised the money for his defence. Couldn't get a lawyer to represent him, couldn't get a bailiff to serve the summons...all too frightened for their careers. And all for a trivial traffic acident.
    I wouldn't think anyone of 24 has the experience to do this job as it should be done but merit doesn't seem to be the important factor here.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I don't know, sort of like someone I know (well not personally) getting a Nobel Peace Prize...for what? I can't say...I simply don't know. Can't see what he's done other than spend our money like water...none of it went into my pocket I assure you! Now he get's a Million...sort of makes the Peace Prize worth nothing more than money now...where's the honor? Goning over to see how Mr Bellouti got his own back...can hardly wait, lol! Wanted to thank you for dropping by to see me! It was an honor.
    Sandi

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hmmm...I hate all this. Sarkozy surely ought to see that his son is more likely to be an embarrassment rather than an asset...but I suppose parents can be a bit blind to their childrens' imperfections.

    There must be someone far more qualified and experienced for the job.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sandi, why are people so obsessed with Obama? The Nobel Prize was so left field.....I think it is reverse racism, like reverse snobbery and equally demeaning.Poor M. Bellouti has been wrecked by this whole business...his name was cleared but the experience of just what the well connected can do to crush you in France has been dreadful for him.

    Ayak, I think in Sarkozy's position, I and I'm sure you, would be very careful not to appoint people to whom one was closely connected...it seems so obviously improper. I was right to wonder about his acasdemic career...he is repeating a year!

    ReplyDelete
  8. One Sarkozy was more than enough, wasn't it?

    There is no way he got the job because he is good. I mean, he is 23 years old for *&? sake! Can someone let his daddy know that nepotism is not okay?

    The whole thing look like a conflict of interest to me. Plus, a huge mistake.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Zhu,
    there is a huge outcry, and, funnily, one of the factors quoted is
    foreigners will laugh at us'!!
    Well, yes.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Топовая гильдия World of Warcraft ждет вас на сервере Гордунни.

    ReplyDelete