Divergences within Ensemble pour Sète: will the Sète municipal opposition survive the winter ?

Philippe Carabasse et Laurent Hercé expriment leur profond désaccord avec les conseils alternatifs. – E. T. et M. E.

Elected environmentalists Philippe Carabasse and Laurent Hercé are wondering about their place within the opposition group Ensemble pour Sète.

The rag is burning within the union of the Sète left. Born from the merger of Alternative Sétoise (led by Véronique Calueba) and Vivement Sète Demain (with Sébastien Denaja as head of the list) in the 2nd round of the 2020 municipal campaign, the opposition group Ensemble pour Sète seems divide, a little more than three years after its creation. Its members, from various political forces (Europe Écologie Les Verts, La France insoumise, the Communist Party, the Socialist Party, Génération Ecologie) are no longer on the same wavelength. Rather than continuing with what is left unsaid, Philippe Carabasse (Génération Écologie) and Laurent Hercé (EELV) have decided to burst the abscess by putting on the table, they say, "real fundamental differences& ;quot; which no longer suits them.

The alternative citizen council: "a hostage-taking together for Sète"

The tipping point, for the two elected officials, dates back to November 20, the day of the organization of the alternative citizens' council, created with the aim of denouncing "the lack of democratic debate" on the part of the majority. "We too regret the closed session, as well as the difficulty of accessing documents, claim the two men. But here, we are talking about respect for the Republic. On the alternative advice, we understand the reason, but we do not approve of the form. It’is even a dangerous process." Laurent Hercé insists: "We are touching on a major point of divergence within the Sète left. We refuse to be associated with the Ensemble pour Sète initiative on this subject. The alternative council is (Véronique) Calueba and (Laura) Seguin. Elected officials, ex-elected officials, members, related to the PCF, were represented on the alternative council. This is a hostage-taking of the Ensemble pour Sète banner that we do not approve of."

"Invisibilization" of ecology

For Philippe Carabasse, the points of friction are well-founded and the subject of alternative advice is only the straw that breaks the camel's back: "We don’ simply have a crisis; allergy, he emphasizes. This is all recurring. We were coming out of a difficult municipal campaign, which nevertheless brought together the radical left and the more moderate left. We did it. There was hope. The group initially worked correctly. Then came the departmental elections, where we could have imagined a sharing of forces. Nay! We only saw communist pairs (in Sète, Calueba led a list with Blasco, Editor's note). The group never had a common political sense."

Laurent Hercé goes further, noting a progressive "invisibilization" of ecology in public debate. "We are just trying to say that ecology can exist. We could be a symbolic city. Today, we seek to make ecology invisible, both on the right and on the left. We disappeared from the landscape. We have the impression that ecology does not exist, anywhere."

Questions also with Denaja…

Asked about a future agreement with Sébastien Denaja (PS), Philippe Carabasse and Laurent Hercé do not close the door. "We have common values", they think, even if questions remain unanswered… "Sébastien Denaja is part of a system, that of the Region. What does he think of the A69 motorway ? What does he think of the Montpellier-Perpignan LGV ? What does he think of the export of animals to the Maghreb departing from the port of Sète ? We would like to hear from him on these questions."

What future for the group ?

Since December, the two elected officials "have’questioned" on the meaning of their commitment within Ensemble pour Sète. Philippe Carabasse believes he has "a duty of responsibility" as an elected official on the left. "That the PCF exists is legitimate. But there is another left. Should we create a real environmentalist group on the municipal council? This would be an option, for a clearer message." The community elected official says he is ’closer to a reasoned left than a radical left" and calls for more recognition. "We represent 12% who cannot win, but who can help us win. Either the PCF continues to look down on us, or they respect our entity and its positioning."

When contacted, Véronique Calueba, head of the Ensemble pour Sète group, said: "I am very surprised by the approach of my two colleagues, both in form and substance. In terms of form, we have group meetings or discussion times and they have not taken the opportunity to address these subjects. Basically, the alternative municipal council is a citizen initiative which every left-wing elected official should welcome, which was a great public success and which responded to the democratic censorship of the mayor which we all condemn in the group. As for ecology, there is not a single ecological fight in this city, both in the municipal council and on the ground, in which we are not involved. To the great dismay of the mayor!" I subscribe to read more