“People are lost” assures Marjorie, member of the citizen collective on the vaccine



Coronavirus: What is the citizen collective for the vaccine for? – 20 minutes

  • The citizen collective held its third plenary session on March 29 at the Iena Palace in Paris.
  • Originally from Drôme, Marjorie is one of the 35 drawn and responsible for raising the questions of the French on the vaccine strategy adopted by the government.
  • The goal ? Allow the government to adjust its vaccination campaign.

Macron had announced it in November 2020. Two months later, the citizen collective on the vaccine took its quarters in isolation, and held, on March 29, its third plenary session at the Palais d’Iena, in Paris, HQ of the
Cese (Economic, Social and Environmental Council).

“We didn’t know each other. The first time we spoke, it was on Zoom! », Recalls Marjorie. Originally from Drôme, she is one of 35 drawn at random and responsible for raising the questions of the French on the vaccine strategy adopted by the government.

Making the voice of rurality heard

“We often criticize the fact that decisions are taken from Paris. So when I was told that I had been drawn, I accepted so that we could hear a little more rurality. Because I know it well: I live in a village of 800 souls in the Drôme ”, she explains. Since the beginning of January, Marjorie’s daily life has therefore been mainly punctuated by meetings with her colleagues from the collective – three per month – and above all, a lot of ground.

“I go to the vaccination centers, I met the prefect of my department, the director of the ARS, among others. And I also go to the markets to question citizens, ”she explains. In short, Marjorie has put on, for a few months, the shoes of a policy, the ambition and the lure of power less. “I, on the other hand, don’t want to be a minister, a member of Parliament, or anything else. Citizen, that suits me well, ”she laughs.

Communication deemed too negative

Alongside the other members of the collective, she therefore tries to collect the main concerns of citizens. The goal ? Allow the government to adjust its vaccination campaign. “Most of the fears that have come to us revolve mainly around the lack of perspective in relation to vaccines, and their possible side effects. People are lost, ”she sums up.

Result: the collective’s first recommendations focused on communication. Necessarily. “We found that in the vaccination centers, no positive message was conveyed. Everything revolves around side effects, risks, prevention. And that’s all ! », She sums up.

“I feel completely legitimate”

Far from “taking their proposals out of the hat” laughs Marjorie, the collective is supported by several stakeholders, such as doctors, nurses, mayors, representatives of students and businesses. And works in close collaboration with the “vaccine mister” of the government, Alain Fisher. “It’s really a great experience,” she says. It is very enriching “.

And when it comes to facing members of the government in plenary session, Marjorie holds the bar high. Drawn at random during the last presentation, on March 29, to bring the voice of the 35, she did not blink in front of the members of the government and the Cese: “I really feel very comfortable in this collective, and personally, I feel completely legitimate ”.

Despite the experience of mixed participatory democracy of the Citizens ‘Convention, Marjorie remains confident about the follow-up given to the work of the citizen collective on the vaccine: “Unlike the Citizens’ Convention, we are not here to write legal texts. And even if we are not told clearly, we sometimes hear, in the media, during interviews with government figures, some of our recommendations. So we have the feeling that the message is getting across! “





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