Encouraged by the president of the Senate, Gérard Larcher, driven by that of the Association of Mayors of France (AMF), David Lisnard, and supported by the parliamentarians who have modified the budget for 2025 in recent days, the local elected in New Caledonia express themselves in turn to save their territory.
On Friday, November 21, the annual congress of the AMF concluded exceptionally with a speech by one of them, Pascal Vittori, elected representative of Bouloupari and president of the French Association of Mayors (non-independence) in New Caledonia. The right has thus shown that it intends to occupy ground on this explosive issue for the Republic, although Vittori spoke on behalf of the 33 mayors of New Caledonia, in the absence of his alter ego from the independence association Florentin Dedane.
The municipalities, especially those of Greater Nouméa, victims of serious damage since May 13, face the dramatic consequences of the insurrection. “We ask for help, national solidarity”declared Vittori, in the presence of Prime Minister Michel Barnier, and recalling the events of the crisis: “A drop of 20 to 30% in the gross domestic product of New Caledonia, which represents a loss of 2,000 million euros of wealth, a third of the active population unemployed and -25% of operating income for our municipalities. »
“We don’t have anything concrete”
Due to the lack of their own taxes, the resources of the latter depend on what the three provinces and the government of New Caledonia pay them and have suddenly returned to their 2015 level. The immediate needs are estimated at 180 million euros, of of which 54 million for operations. and 74 million to begin reconstruction. However, since March, even before the riots in Noumea, municipalities had been deprived of the additional taxes that the local government had to pay them due to the nickel crisis.
On Monday, at the Issy-les-Moulineaux Conference Center (Hauts-de-Seine), the AMF presented its proposals to finance the reconstruction of New Caledonia: solidarity fund for exceptional subsidies in 2024, revision of the rehabilitation pre-fund, guidance law… and offered a platform to its mayors. Among them Florence Rolland, young mayor of La Foa, in the southern province, and member of the Generation NC movement, loyal to deputy Nicolas Metzdorf (who belongs to the Renaissance parliamentary group). She has just been elected president of the Association of Overseas Communities and Municipalities (130 communities).
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