France: Macron Appoints Himself Head of Secret Services

The French President, Emmanuel Macron, is to directly lead the fight against counter-terrorism by creating a National Counter-Terrorist Center (CNCT). Before, the President monitored the efforts bearing on terrorism, but from the shadows. Today, Macron seems to want to assume total control over the process, aiming for faster information and a reduction of tensions between the current several services. 

During the presidential elections, Macron support members advised the candidate to deal with coordination directly from the President’s Office. The idea of creating a task force was born, all the more because “Journalists love this kind of thing, it works” said Benjamin Griveaux, government spokesperson. “When you are facing terrorism issues, you have to explain to the people that you are doing something new”, says a government source. The Task Force idea, then, is not only an attempt to be more efficient, but also a marketing campaign.

Yet, journalists should be careful. In 1982, French President Mitterrand centralized information processing about terrorism. The result was that the task force tapped journalists', politicians' and others’ phones for which, in 2005, former leaders and collaborators were sentenced.

By Antoine Dewaest

Photo: AFP