Surprise guest of the Borne government in 2022, the one who was a symbol, first black Minister of National Education, recognized academic and labeled left, continues his hard learning of the political-media universe.

Reputed not very political despite his assertions - "I am no longer a neophyte", he told AFP at the end of June - Pap Ndiaye, 57, took lightning by describing on Radio J Sunday, the CNews channel "far right".

"When you look at CNews, when you look at what Europe 1 has become, when you look at this set, the conclusion is obvious. Yes, CNews is very clearly far-right. I think they are harming democracy, there is no doubt," said the minister targeting Vincent Bolloré, a "character obviously very close to the most radical far right".

In addition to the outcry of journalists from the media branch of the Bolloré group, there have been attacks from the right and the extreme right against a minister who has become their favorite target.

"The Minister of National Education is extremely null (...) and tries to distract by attacking the freedom of the press," LR leader Eric Ciotti said on France 2 on Wednesday.

Lawsuit in +wokisme+

Questioned Tuesday at the National Assembly during questions to the government, Mr. Ndiaye was surprised by the reactions on "banal observations that I make on the evolution of a television channel".

The unexpected appointment to the Ministry of Education of this specialist in the social history of the United States and minorities, was supposed to embody a break in tone compared to his predecessor Jean-Michel Blanquer, who had alienated a large part of the teaching world.

Pap Ndiaye visits a school in Nogent-sur-Marne (Val-de-Marne) on June 15, 2023 © Emmanuel DUNAND / AFP/Archives

However, if the form has changed, the substance remains the same, criticize the teachers' unions who consider that the only decision-maker in educational matters is at the Elysee.

Mr. Ndiaye's roadmap appears to be largely dictated by Emmanuel Macron who leaves him little space, reserving the primacy of all major announcements, for example on the salary increase of teachers.

So many snakes to swallow for a minister who also had to fall back on his plan on social and educational diversity.

The head of state is however much more withdrawn when it comes to defending his minister against the right and the far right who are investigating a systematic trial in "wokism".

"Pap Ndiaye is not into crooked stuff. But he has not managed to get rid of the image of +wokiste+ in chief, while objectively he has done nothing to give credence to the thesis, "comments a minister.

'Unfair'

"The Mayor, Darmanin, given the results... they are doing well while we will not let anything pass to Ndiaye because he was not elected. He's supposedly a +wokiste+! It's particularly unfair," said a majority member of the Assembly.

A communicator close to the government summarizes: "It's like Agnès Buzyn (former Minister of Health from civil society), this political world is too hard for them."

Faced with a new round of criticism while he is particularly weakened, Pap Ndiaye will have been able to measure the weakness of his supporters in his own camp. For an MP like Caroline Janvier (Renaissance), who maintains that Pap Ndiaye "is right" to recall that "CNews is indeed a far-right media", how many MPs keep a cautious silence?

Invited Tuesday by Europe 1, Stanislas Guerini, Minister of Transformation and Public Service, seemed to distance himself from his counterpart of the rue de Grenelle: "If I thought that Europe 1 was a far-right station, I would not have come to your antenna this morning."

As for Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, questioned Wednesday on the situation in the JDD where the editorial staff is on strike against the arrival of Geoffroy Lejeune, a journalist marked by the extreme right, then on the words of her minister, she responded to the only first questioning: "it is not up to the government to interfere in the management of the media, whatever they are."

The MRAP denounces in a statement Wednesday "with the greatest firmness the ignoble attacks" and "the indisputably racist overtones" of which the Minister of Education is subject.

© 2023 AFP