Its new leader has barely been named after several weeks of trial, error and internal disputes, is the gendarmerie preparing to once again experience one of these small storms that destroy the top of the hierarchy? According to several corroborating sources, the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, has proposed Lieutenant General Samuel Dubuis, current head of the gendarmes in New Aquitaine, for the position of inspector general of the Armed Forces of the Gendarmerie (IGAG).
This “wise man” function, little known to the general public, consists in particular of carrying out internal investigations – particularly on sensitive acts committed within the institution – or offering mediation in complex individual situations, for example when a soldier presents a appeal. against a ministerial sanction. Above all, it presents an important advantage for its holder: being able to decorate his stripes with the fifth star of “army general”, which, in the gendarmerie, is no small promotion.
According to some of his colleagues, this recognition is on par with the professional merits of Mr. Dubuis, Saint-Cyrian, helicopter pilot, former advisor to Édouard Philippe in Matignon and then chief of staff of the former director general of the gendarmerie Christian Rodríguez .
But, in an institution with a very old memory, where historical references still replace the viaticum, they immediately point out that his young age, that is, 53 years, would designate him as one of the youngest promoted to the rank of army general. from Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque, named “five stars” at the age of 44 after having contributed, among other things, to the liberation of Paris in 1944 and having collected the act of capitulation of Japan on behalf of France. year. In other words, Mr. Dubuis’ promotion to such a rank, accompanying such a role, would be nothing short of hasty, if not entirely premature.
delicate file
The gendarmes’ pronounced taste for history is not everything in this low-profile row, because the criticism is fueled mainly by the proximity between Mr. Dubuis, who commanded, from 2010 to 2014, the Eure gendarmerie group, and the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, whose political bastion is this department and who participated very actively in the general’s appointment project. Mr. Lecornu’s office “don’t comment” this delicate issue, while those around Mr. Retailleau, minister responsible for the gendarmerie, point out that the appointment of the future IGAG “is in progress”, without further details about the identity of the future promotion or the calendar for his entry into office.
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