Macron Says Interior Minister's Resignation Cannot Be Compared To 'Political Crisis'

Macron Says Interior Minister's Resignation Cannot Be Compared to 'Political Crisis'

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday commented on the resignation of Interior Minister Gerard Collomb, stressing that it was the minister's personal choice and has nothing to do with a political crisis, French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said.

PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd October, 2018) French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday commented on the resignation of Interior Minister Gerard Collomb, stressing that it was the minister's personal choice and has nothing to do with a political crisis, French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said.

Macron participated in a cabinet meeting earlier in the day.

"Of course, he [Macron] returned to the resignation of Gerard Collomb. He stressed that it was the choice of Gerard Collomb ... He underlined that nothing that has happened in the past 48 hours was a political crisis," Griveaux told a briefing.

The French president accepted Collomb's resignation earlier on Wednesday and instructed Prime Minister Edouard Philippe to find a temporary replacement for the outgoing minister.

Collomb, who served as the mayor of Lyon in 2001-2017, said in mid-September that he might run in the city's mayoral election in 2020. He also stated that in this regard he might leave the ministerial post as early as in 2019.