French President Emmanuel Macron was sworn in at a solemn but symbolic ceremony at the Élysée Palace on Saturday, insisting on the need to “take action” a few days before his second term begins.
The inauguration of the fourth president in the Fifth Republic, re-elected after De Gaulle, Mitterrand and Chirac, is in line with that of his predecessors without leaving the Élysée. The event essentially boils down to a televised ceremony that is broadcast live on all major channels.
At 11:00 am (06:00 GMT), Emmanuel Macron entered the palace’s largest and most prestigious ballroom with the sound of the first part of Handel’s Oboe Concerto.
The President of the Constitutional Council, Laurent Fabius, declared his victory over the far-right candidate Marine Le Pen with 58.55 percent of the votes in the second round on April 24. Then Macron was presented with the necklace of the Grand Master of the Legion of Honor.
Referring specifically to the war in Ukraine, he said “I am aware of the seriousness of the times” in front of some 450 invited personalities and insisted on the need to “act tirelessly”.
His predecessors Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande, his family including his wife Brigitte, his friends, members of the government, at the head of the prime minister Jean Castex, as well as the leaders of both houses of the Parliament, academics, trade unionists, religious people…
“New Method”
The head of state promised that by “planning, reforming, linking” the French “in a new way”, he would leave a legacy to the youth “a more livable planet and a more vibrant and stronger France”.
He welcomed the guests, including health workers, local officials, association leaders, athletes, embodying the stated priorities of the new five-year period.
Macron then went to the courtyard to examine the soldiers to the sound of Marseille, as well as the piece “Terre et mer” by Bagad de Lann-Bihoué, played in honor of the soldiers killed in the Sahel operation in recent years.
According to a tradition going back to the Old Regime, 21 guns will be fired from the Esplanada dos Invalidos.
However, the new five-year period will not officially begin until May 14. The appointment of the new prime minister is expected only later, with legislative elections approaching in a month.
Macron’s apparent difficulties in finding the ideal person to lead the government are fueling speculation. Véronique Bédague, former chief of staff of Socialist Prime Minister Manuel Valls and current managing director of real estate group Nexity, reportedly rejected the offer, as did Socialist MP Valerie Rabault, who said she was approached and refused. With a 65-year retirement plan.
Eliseu, in turn, assures that “the president does not offer anyone the post of prime minister”.
On Sunday, Emmanuel Macron will attend ceremonies to mark the anniversary of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany on May 8, 1945.
He will deliver a speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Monday, before heading to Berlin to meet with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, his first trip abroad since his re-election.
source: Noticias
