Cyclone Chido in Mayotte: between two measures, Emmanuel Macron causes controversy during a trip there

On a trip to Mayotte on December 19, 2024, the President of the Republic made headlines more for certain remarks than for the aid offered. We explain. 

Emmanuel Macron justified controversial remarks made the day before during a tense face-to-face meeting with residents of Mayotte on Friday, saying he had defended a France insulted by “people” from the National Rally.

Highly contested remarks

Without France, “you would be 10,000 times more in the shit”, the head of state had said on Thursday evening to Mahorais who accused him of being abandoned by the State since the passage of cyclone Chido last weekend, remarks deemed unworthy by the opposition.

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“Macron resigns”

During these exchanges, Emmanuel Macron was sharply attacked with cries of “Macron resign!” or “Water, water, water!” by a population helpless in the face of the scale of the damage. In an interview with the archipelago's media before his departure for Djibouti on Friday, he said he had come across “people from the National Rally who (…) insulted France”.

“When we insult (France), the president gets angry”, he said, adding: “I know the impatience of the population (…), I have heard this impatience (…), we are responding to it point by point and so life will change in the coming days.”

The death toll is rising

The death toll from the devastating passage of Cyclone Chido in Mayotte has risen to at least 35 dead, 67 seriously injured and 2,432 lightly injured, the Interior Ministry announced on Friday.

“The death toll does not reflect the reality of the 100,000 people living in precarious housing. The prefect therefore ordered the sub-prefect the establishment of a mission to search for the dead; 70% of the inhabitants have been seriously affected”, added the ministry.

Lack of water

In a press release, it also specified that electricity was “being restored” and that “the restart of non-potable water has been restored”. “The drinking water treatment plants are generally operational despite significant material damage,” he added, indicating that “50% of the water will be restored within 48 hours and 95% within 7 days.”

Some 32,000 liters of water were delivered by air on Friday. A CMA CGM container ship was due to deliver 1.6 million liters of water on the evening of December 22 and then on December 29.