Philippe Landrein has announced his candidacy for the presidency of the Grand Figeac community of municipalities, as he promised on the evening of his victory in the second round of municipal elections. The new mayor of Figeac aims to capitalize on the momentum he has generated to defeat the incumbent president, Vincent Labarthe, who is running for re-election.
“Why are you running for the presidency of Grand Figeac?”
“I will be a candidate on April 7 for the presidency of Grand Figeac with a very different approach than what I have experienced over the past six years. I want to change the governance and not arrive with vice presidents and a pre-written project. I want the territorial project to be carried out by the community councilors and to organize a two-day seminar. The idea is to establish a strategy that will not be decided on another floor. I really want to change the governance model. We would form around ten different themes, with ten vice presidents, commissions composed of twelve community or municipal councilors who have real expertise in the field. The selection will be done by sector, with two members per sector. Each commission will work on proposals that will then be subject to deliberation and voting in the community council.”
“If you had not been elected mayor of Figeac, would you still have been a candidate?”
“If I had not been elected mayor of Figeac, I would not have been a candidate this time. In my eyes, to preside over such an assembly, there must be a form of legitimacy linked to the vote. I find it difficult to understand that a minority elected official in the city center is at the same time president of Grand Figeac. Six years ago, my candidacy was more symbolic and represented a form of expression. In this case, we are in a different configuration, different from 2020. If tomorrow Vincent Labarthe is the president of Grand Figeac, we are heading towards a certain instability. I have received a lot of positive feedback from mayors who tell me: it must continue and also change in Grand Figeac. We want to implement anonymous voting. And I have asked that next Tuesday’s vote be with secret ballots in a polling booth.”
“How are you campaigning for the election on April 7?”
“We may not have all the resources at our disposal, but we have sent an email to all the town halls where we offer interested elected officials to respond by running for a vice president position. We have already received a number of responses, and today candidates have been found for all vice presidents. There are some surprises coming from people who were already community or municipal councilors but were discreet, in the shadow, and were waiting to be solicited. I do not want to create a clan, but to open up to those who wish to get involved. In the areas of roads, health, or urban planning, if we have a specialist in a municipal council, we will gladly take them. In the same logic as for the municipal team, I want above all competence to develop a concrete and viable project. Note that on Wednesday, we are organizing a live Facebook event on my page to answer all questions.”
“You have often emphasized that Figeac did not have the place it deserved in Grand Figeac. What will change if you become president of the community?”
“What will change is that Figeac will regain its level of investments corresponding to what it should be, no more, no less. Taking the figures mentioned during the campaign: Figeac represents 22% of the population of Grand Figeac, 31% of the tax, and in the last two terms only 7% of the investment. The idea is to work on proposals that everyone agrees with. We need to find a fair balance to improve the frequency of investments in Figeac. We need the city center to reach a level of attractiveness, for example to be able to recruit doctors or for a more marked event policy. For sports facilities, we want to stop the Panaf project because we want the whole community to agree, and for the sports facilities to be community-based. We can certainly build the future sports complex near Figeac, in a neighboring commune.”
“What proposals are you highlighting?”
“I want to launch a large road budget increase plan. And inevitably, we have to start the revision of the PLUi. We have an example in Figeac on which we have already focused our attention: the OAP in the Ségala district. From the start, our option was rather for housing, about 15 to 17. This is very important because this OAP does not meet the needs of the territory. When so many people are dissatisfied, we absolutely must reconsider the PLUi and get back to work on this topic.”
Overall, Philippe Landrein is presenting a forward-looking vision for the Grand Figeac community and highlighting the need for a change in governance structure to better serve the interests of Figeac and its residents.
[Context: Philippe Landrein is a candidate for the presidency of the Grand Figeac community of municipalities after winning the mayoral election in Figeac.] [Fact Check: The campaign focuses on changing governance structures, promoting competence-based decision-making, and ensuring fair investments in Figeac within the Grand Figeac community.]
