Paris (AFP)

"That he closes his mouth": wanting to assert brutally his authority over the chief architect of Notre Dame in the debate on reconstruction, General Georgelin missioned by the Elysee to pilot the operation has attracted the Lightning of the Minister of Culture.

"The comments of General Georgelin against Philippe Villeneuve, chief architect of historical monuments in charge of Notre Dame, are not acceptable," said Frank Riester in a message on Twitter Thursday. "Respect is a cardinal value of our society, and as public leaders we must be exemplary".

Questioned Wednesday by deputies on the future of Notre-Dame and especially on the ultra-sensitive issue of the reconstruction of the spire of the cathedral, destroyed in the giant fire of April 15, General Georgelin attacked the chief architect, favorable to an identical restoration

"I already explained to him that he is closing his mouth and that we are advancing in wisdom so that we can serenely make the best choice for Notre-Dame, for Paris, for the world," said the former head of state- Major of Armies before the Cultural Affairs Committee of the National Assembly, in response to a question from a Member of Parliament.

Philippe Villeneuve decided in June to restore "the identical" arrow built by the architect Viollet-le-Duc in 1859. "I am in the restoration of what exists", had- he insisted in mid-October on RTL. "The future is either + I restore identically, it will be me +, or we make a contemporary arrow and it will be another".

- Building "still in danger" -

The President of the Republic for his part expressed his desire to include a "contemporary gesture" on the emblematic building. Appointing the former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces to lead the reconstruction, which he wishes in 5 years, Emmanuel Macron bet on a man who would advance with the determination of a warlord this project of 'an extreme complexity.

Asked in mid-October about the possibility of a competition of architects that worries heritage defenders, Mr. Riester relativized: "Will it be a competition of architects, a contest ideas, all this n is not finalized, all of this needs to be refined. "

The minister assured that even if the last word would return to the State owner, it will listen to "the very special and fundamental opinion" of the diocese and also of the City of Paris.

For his part, Philippe Villeneuve, at the bedside of the cathedral since 2013, has estimated that the five-year period of work set by the head of state for the restoration of the Gothic cathedral was tenable only "if we redo ( knows) the same "because we would then win" a certain time ".

"The 5 years, we get them by the rigor of the site, the choice of good expertise," said Jean-Louis Georgelin Wednesday before the deputies. For the choices concerning the orientations of the building site, and in particular the choice for the arrow, he made an appointment in 2021. By then, he wished to "appease the hustle and bustle" in the communication around the works. And insisted on the importance of first finalizing the security of the building, "still in danger" as long as the old scaffolding that frames it has not been dismantled.

With the arrival of winter, "we are not immune to a strong gust of wind that could destabilize this scaffolding," said General Georgelin.

The public institution headed by General Georgelin will be formally launched with a first board of directors scheduled for early December.

© 2019 AFP