The measure, voted on Tuesday, was supported by the entire municipal council of Ambarès-et-Lagrave, opposition included. Nordine Guendez (PS) declares that she wants to “send a message” to the authors of virulent remarks “which go beyond the framework”.
“It’s tense. In town, the mayor seems to have lost many residents. Even with Ibn Sina (the association which carried out the first mosque project, Editor’s note)they are furious”immediately attacks the opposition elected official David Poulain (without label). Since the revelation in our columns at the end of October of the existence of two mosque projects within the commune of Ambarès-et-Lagrave, the subject has been at the heart of discussions in the commune. It also remains a source of controversy and tension. First, some residents of Ibn Sina's project are virulently opposed to it, particularly because they find the location poorly chosen. Then, Nordine Guendez (PS), the mayor of Ambarès-et-Lagrave, assures Figaro that there is not room for two mosque projects in the town. Finally, many people criticize the mayor for “bad” communication on the subject.
Faced with criticism and opposition which may have crossed the red line of correction according to him, the councilor requested functional protection. “This is a message addressed to those who pour out their gall on social networks. Listening to them, I planned the installation of this mosque before being mayor and before being born. Not everything can be said with impunity. This debate must take place in the right conditions”thunders the chosen one. With a firm and clear intention: to initiate “legal proceedings” against “all those who go beyond the framework”. “We are in the process of collecting proven defamatory comments from those who question my integrity and that of those around me with a view to filing a complaint. I am not intimidating anyone but there is some decorum to be had in this complicated period,” indicates to Figaro Nordine Guendez.
Climate of Suspicion
The measure, voted on in the municipal council on Tuesday November 12, was supported by all elected officials, opposition included. Even the United for Ambarès-et-Lagrave group, which abstained on all of the decisions due to failure to receive the agenda within five days, declared its Republican support for the mayor. Before you ping: “If there had been, from the start, correct and respectful information for local residents (on the first mosque project, Editor’s note)things would not have taken on such proportions. Now, the time is more for appeasement than for possible legal proceedings which we do not hope will only be intended to silence the opponents of this project.. A position shared by opposition elected official David Poulain: “The mayor says he has suffered personal attacks and threats. If this is true, it is unacceptable. However, I would not want him to use functional protection to solve the problems he created with his lies. The aim of this deliberation also seems to scare us.”
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In the commune where the subject has only been officially public since the end of October – while the building permit from Ibn Sina for the first mosque and the declaration of intention to purchase from the Muslim Center of Bordeaux (CMB) for the second were filed in August – a climate of suspicion reigns. “We are happy that Le Figaro revealed this project for a second mosque the day before the public meeting on the subject. We didn't know about it.”tells us Ahmed Majhoubi, the president of Ibn Sina who had until now maintained his silence to the press. For the association, discovering that its project was being weighed against that of the Muslim Center of Bordeaux was a shock.
“Our file is under investigation, we submit to the requirements of the PLU and we are awaiting a decision to express ourselves. At this time, we intend to answer legitimate questions from local residents and work with them to help them better understand our project. he adds, clearly still determined that his religious center will see the light of day. In an attempt to reconcile the need expressed by Girondin Muslims for a religious center, the need to reassure the population and their desire to accommodate only one mosque in the town, the mayor of Ambarès-et-Lagrave asserts Figaro that a meeting between the two project leaders and the town hall must be organized in the coming days.
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