Unfinished Business

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In France , 36,000 cities and villages, The First round of the mayor elections in March, and will finally hold The Second round next weekend, after a three-month delay in the Corona-Virus-pandemic. Chris Bockman interviewed one of The Hopefuls - the ninety Andre Trigano .

"I Hope I 'm not going to apologize again, not dead. "

This was my introduction to the dapper and witty mayor of The City of Pamiers, in the foothills of the French Pyrenees population of 16,000 people.

Andre Trigano is 94 years old and has been in public office for almost 50 Years

He came up in The First round of elections in March and if he wins The Second round on 28 June, he is 101 years old, at The End of his mandate.

There are other older mayor clung to the reins of Power - including a 98-year-old for re-election in a village in the vicinity of Bordeaux , But none of them has a background story is not quite as colorful as Trigano.

in 1925, Born In Paris , he was a teenager during The German occupation of The City in The Second World War . His parents, Jewish immigrants from Algeria, were instructed to live to flee from a Police Officer in their house, told them That The Gestapo worked out, had a warrant out for your Arrest .

Andre Trigano is a feud "" - The City of Pamiers

she took cover in the mountainous region of Ariège, in The South of France , and of the Young Trigano, The Resistance occurred. To help, he falsified documents, the Western allies - often a pilot has been shot down to Escape to Spain. He was arrested Three Times , But somehow he survived.

After The War he decided to stay in The South and went into business.

His experiences during The Occupation had convinced him That the only way to prevent That was a replay of The Horrors of The Past to people from different backgrounds and nationalities, go On Holiday together.

His father and older brother had a tent-the business before The War and he was a Camping holiday company. Then The Family got an order for the delivery of tents to the newly-created Club Med , and the other brother Gilbert,. went to work for The Company to his financial Director, then President and General Director

Andre Trigano related to the tents for Club Med in the early years, it grew full in the Second Half of the 1960s

Although Club Med is today known for luxury hotels, for The First 15 years of its existence, guests stayed overnight at the huts slept in tents, and grass, and Andre helped source some of the original tents - US Army surplus tents for 10 persons, were on the run after The War , in continental Europe, and cheap. The idea was simple, community-holidays in the sun in places like Majorca, KOs, and Djerba in Tunisia. The Club -Med-mantra, which was Andre Trigano would have approved, and may have helped to inspire, That everyone was equal in the holidays.

The Trigano tent prospered the business to increase thanks in part to the French state, the decision in the mid-1950s, the paid leave of three weeks per year. It was to be a major player in the free movement of goods and caravan industry with the slogan in the 1970s, Le Camping c'est Trigano (Camping , it is Trigano). Meanwhile, Andre's outdoor holiday company accumulated dozens of campsites in France , Spain and Portugal.

The Cash helped him in the compilation of A Collection of 120 Classic Cars including vintage Citroen's, Cadillac, Triumph, Rolls Royce and Excalibur .

Trigano collection of vintage Citroen's at an auction in the year 2016

But increasingly Trigano focuses on policy, turning this corner of the Pyrenees in his personal political fiefdom. He was mayor of Pamiers, the largest town in the Ariège, for 25 years. Previously, he was the mayor of a smaller city, Mazeres, for 24 years, and at the same time, for a while, a member of The National Parliament In Paris .

He says his personal wealth creates trust: people are less worried, he will try his position to his own profit.

So why, After All This Time in a public office, is he running again?

he says he still has many unfinished tasks, including plans to renovate the centre of Pamiers, which is a pocket of poverty surrounded by dozens of factories to work overtime to make parts for the aerospace industry.

"Every night I go to sleep and Wake up a dozen great new ideas for The City ," he says.

But his age, inevitably, was made against him by his opponents. The two That I spoke to said it was time for him to.

Yes, he did a lot for The City in The Past , said one of them - Mary line Doussat, who operates a bakery with 20 employees - But he turned into an old autocrats.

Trigano says That he wants to. the renewal of The City of Pamiers between now and 2025

This Trigano is explained through a joke in the hope That he will not apologize for not dead

"I can sound lucid? Do I make sense?", he asks me rhetorically, an hour in The Interview .

This Young or at least Younger - Wannabes will have to wait, he says.

"If you build a 10-storey building, the change architects to the fifth Floor - this makes no sense," he said, amused.

With a twinkle in his eye, he told me That he has performed in 19 different elections of the mayor, the Regional Council and to the Parliament, and lost only once.

"to fight, If anyone wants my job, they have to be, for you!"

Chris Bockman is the author of, Are you the Foie Gras correspondent? Another slow news day in South-west France .

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Source of news: bbc.com