By Obinna Uballa
France was plunged deeper into political turmoil on Monday after Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and his government abruptly resigned, barely a month into his tenure, dealing a fresh blow to President Emmanuel Macron’s fragile grip on power.
Lecornu, 39, who had only hours earlier unveiled his cabinet lineup, quit amid a storm of criticism from opposition parties and even some of Macron’s minority coalition allies.
Reports said his proposed government was dominated by holdovers from previous administrations, fuelling anger that Macron had ignored demands for renewal.
The resignation makes Lecornu the fifth prime minister to exit since Macron’s re-election in 2022 and leaves the embattled president struggling to maintain control of France’s political agenda.
Lecornu had been tasked with steering through a contentious slimmed-down budget aimed at cutting the deficit and reassuring jittery financial markets about the eurozone’s second-largest economy.
But instead of stability, the sudden collapse of his government sent shockwaves through Paris and beyond, reports said. France’s main stock index, the CAC 40, tumbled 2 percent at Monday’s open, it was gathered, erasing billions in market value and underscoring investor fears that the country may be sliding into ungovernability.
The resignations mark the latest setback for Macron, who faces mounting street protests, fractious relations with parliament, and an emboldened opposition that has repeatedly blocked his reform agenda.
