The new mayor of Saint-Denis, the rebellious Bally Bagayoko, has issued a decree banning all evictions until October 31, if there is no relocation solution. The Seine-Saint-Denis prefecture has appealed to the administrative court of Montreuil to suspend this decree. However, it is not within the mayor’s prerogative, as it is the responsibility of the state to provide emergency housing and thus make this kind of decision.
Bally Bagayoko was well aware that his decree would be suspended. “We expected this scenario, but it is a political act,” he explains. “Our goal is to awaken political and popular consciousness and to show the state that it is not taking its responsibilities.” This anti-eviction decree was actually a campaign promise of the new rebellious mayor who claims a measure to protect the most vulnerable households and to partially address the housing crisis affecting his territory.
But for the state services, this does not go over well. “After examination, this decree appears to be contrary to the current legal framework,” said the Seine-Saint-Denis prefecture. This has not been a first in recent years, as several communist municipalities in Ile-de-France, like Gennevilliers or Bagneux, have issued similar decrees and have also seen their texts suspended.
