Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen members of the council, dear colleagues,
Mr. President, the agenda of our plenary meeting of this Thursday March 3rd, 2011, relates mainly to the important file of the delegation of public service of the Espérance airport of Grand-Case.
In my capacity as member of this territorial council, but also rich of my experience as former Vice President of the General council of Guadeloupe from 1998 to 2007 in charge of the airport portfolios, I will take fully part in this debate today.
But allow me Mr. President, and fellow colleagues, to review and consider a few points and events that lately have been in the headlines and for which it is difficult for us not to restore some truths.
Yes Mr. President, my dear colleagues, during our last territorial council meeting that dealt with the very ticklish issue of the reform of the professional tax, our group Rassemblement – Responsabilité – Rèussite (RRR), as customary and faithful to its practice since 2007, took all its share in the debates, even if this bothered some members of this council.
It is impossible for us to sit in this council and to be simple observers like some.
May I remind you all, that from the incept of this new collectivité, we have chosen to place ourselves in the logic of being constructive and not of systematic opposition, conscious are we of our responsibility, responsibility that we intend to fully assume until the term of this mandate.
Yes, it is true, on the very technical subject of the reform of the professional tax, rather than rejecting all in a block, we have wished and chosen to improve what could have been improved.
Face with the absence of statistical data and projections, coupled to an insufficiency of preparation, yet with the relevance of the remarks and amendments proposed by our group RRR, president GUMBS you had no other choices but to adjourn the meeting and to move the session in general committee.
Just for clarity sake, we wish to recall here, that the session was not about creating a new tax, but rather to replace the professional tax by a more comprehensible, more just, more equitable tax mechanism that would not increase the contributive share of those who were already contributing with the professional tax.
We wish to refresh the minds and to enlighten the memory of some members of this council, by reminding them that just a few months ago all of them were boldly declaring that these tax reforms were part of the electoral program of the group on whose list they were elected, those in charge of the Collectivité today (UP/UMP and their dissident members).
We also wish to recall that despite of the improvements that we were able to bring to the text, the few authorized exemptions here and there, our group had decided not to take part in the vote so such tax reform, and we did this with a clear and quiet conscience, because of the still too many inaccuracies, not enough of visibility on the tax basis, on the possible returns and not enough guarantees on its equity.
Yes, my dear colleagues, it is the courage to have gone to the end of our convictions that has brought us so many disagreeable and outrageous remarks from the group UD, taxing us of complicity with the group UP-UMP of president GUMBS.
It is the same persons who we have not heard during the suppression of the wealth tax who today dare to accuse us (RRR) and make believe that they are white as snow. It is again those same persons who are now discovering the difficulty of being on the other side of the table because they are not listened to and not heard.
Fellow Colleagues, certainly we are entering a delicate time when all attempts will be made to try to discredit each other, this might be the political game, but let me be clear and let it be known without a sign of a doubt, for us members of the RRR group, the future of our Island is not a game.
Do not choose the wrong opponent. And remember, that you will not be judged on part of your actions or a few months of your mandate, but on the whole, (before and after you decided to quit your former partners).
Mr. President, there are two other points for us that also deserve clarifications.
Indeed, you took the initiative to solicit certain companies that you deemed, could assist in sponsoring the sporting and associative world, based on their financial good standing. We are unaware of the results of your initiative and if yours goals have been met, but we deem it important for us to warn all associations in order for them not to be fooled by the impression given today, that all of a sudden, finding the funds they so desperately need is no longer a problem, and that from now it will start raining Euros and Dollars.
We would like to make it abundantly clear that we are not foolish and neither do we easily accept a 6 for a 9; we know the ulterior motives and the intentions of each and everyone. We do hope however, that in this jungle those persons in charge of the various associations will be able to move forward with discernment.
We agree that it is important to take care of those who excel but we wish to also state that the mass also deserve our fullest attention and support too. « Avenir sportif Club" for example, and just to mention this association, is doing an excellent work with our young people and positive results are being achieved too. Will this association be entitled to the same regards?
And to be complete on this matter, may the other associations be reassured, we who, may be, do not have as great a means as the others, we will continue to assist and support you even if it is with plane tickets, cases of juice, water, etc.. and of course with our presence whenever it will be possible for us.
I will not be able to conclude this opening intervention, without evoking a long pending problem that for sure will have an obvious impact on our debate in a while. Yes, Mr. President, we are still awaiting the meeting with the SEMSAMAR, which should allow us as councillors, and especially those who are not member of its board of directors, to have direct exchanges on the company's strategic orientations, its future programs and the kind of relationship that ought to exist between this company and the Collectivité.
Permit me to remind you once more that we are still awaiting the meeting that our group has requested on the SEMSAMAR, and that was promised to us before the end of the year 2010, then in January 2011 and here we are already in March, still no session on this subject. We will not satisfy ourselves with a change of presidency; it should be proven that after the many business trips, that for us, SEMSAMAR is a major concern.
The debate today on the Delegation of Public Service (DSP) of Grand-Case Airport will surely be hampered, but whose fault is it?
Such are Mr. President, and members of this council, the points that we wanted to bring forth prior to our important debate on the choice of the company that will be granted the management and investment contract for this structuring equipment, so essential to the economic development of our territory.
Thank you, Mr. President, Ladies and gentlemen members of the council for listening to me.
For the RRR group.
Guillaume ARNELL
