During his visit to the island of Mayotte, recently devastated by Cyclone Chido — the most violent storm to hit the West Indian Ocean region in 90 years — French President Emmanuel Macron was met with a storm himself.
On a walkabout on December 19 that was supposed to address the anger and despair of the French département residents, Macron lost his temper, appearing to become angry with them.
Macron had encountered furious locals demanding answers after losing their homes, livelihoods and loved ones.
Many residents were unconvinced of Macron’s answers, accusing him of downplaying the crisis.
“What resources are you going to give us? You’ve come here to tell us all is well — it’s not true.”
“Here, we’re counting the dead. That’s the reality, Mr President,” one resident shouted.
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Macron attempted to defend France’s aid efforts, saying: “You’re happy to be in France. There’s no place in the Indian Ocean where we help people so much, that’s a fact.”
”We can’t want to be a French department and say that it doesn’t work when France is in solidarity. What other territory in this region or elsewhere delivers water and healthcare as we do here,” he added.
As tensions rose, the President snapped at the crowd: “If it wasn’t France, you’d be ten thousand times more in trouble!,” adding: “I’m not the cyclone! I’m not responsible!”
So far, 31 deaths and 2,500 injuries have been officially reported, although Macron himself acknowledged the toll could climb significantly due to the island’s remoteness and inaccessibility.
French media also reported that around 500 civil servants, particularly teachers, had requested to be “repatriated” to mainland France or the nearby French island of La Réunion in the aftermath of Cyclone Chido.
Most of the teachers demanding to leave reported damaged houses with no roofs, water or electricity and no online networks.
According to a provisional assessment, 40 per cent of school buildings were seriously damaged or destroyed in the storm.
Jean-Noël Barrot, France’s Minister for Overseas Territories, recently addressed the situation during an interview with local media in La Réunion.
He stated that arrangements were being made through Air Austral to accommodate those wishing to relocate. “People in Mayotte who wish to return to Réunion will be taken care of, and their returns will be facilitated,” he said.
Macron vowed to eradicate slums areas on Mayotte, accelerate the deportation of illegal immigrants and overhaul governance on the island.
“We need everyone to accept that, in terms of competencies and rules, we need to change things,” Macron said on December 19.
He also emphasised the urgent need to “step up the fight against illegal immigration, while obviously restoring schools, rebuilding housing, and hospitals”.
French Prime Minister François Bayrou has estimated that rebuilding Mayotte would cost €4 billion to €5 billion, with a goal to complete reconstruction within two years.
Despite these announcements, the frustration seems to lie in a deeper feeling of abandonment for the Mahorais, with the President’s visit doing little to ease their despair.
