Sarkozy-bashing may not be panacea for French left

Paris (AFP) - On the face of it, the return to France's political stage of unpopular right-wing former president Nicolas Sarkozy is welcome news for the beleaguered left.

President Francois Hollande's Socialists have risen quickly to the bait, saying Sarkozy's record would haunt him, along with a raft of legal entanglements.

Prime Minister Manuel Valls seemed to savour the fight, saying Saturday: "The democratic debate on the track record, on the plan, on the economic situation, is on."

Sarkozy's record "will be his millstone", said Jean-Christophe Cambadelis, the head of the Socialist Party.

But political scientist Laurent Bouvet said Sarkozy's comeback was a "poisoned chalice" for a left too eager to sweep its own failings under the carpet.

"The French left thought it was unified and strengthened in the fight against its declared and detested enemy (during the 2012 election), but it has shown itself to be weaker and more divided than ever since coming to power," Bouvet wrote in Slate's French version.

Sarkozy's return will give new hope for another election win in 2017 "to anyone on the left forgetting the reality of the economic and political situation, forgetting the difficulties... since 2012," he said.

The man who lost to Hollande in 2012 is credited with having made audacious foreign policy moves but broadly failing on the economic front, particularly on jobs.

Unemployment rose to close to 10 percent on Sarkozy's watch at the height of the financial crisis, and more than double that rate among young people.

His "bling-bling" style also shocked the country after he celebrated his 2007 victory at a posh Paris restaurant and went straight for a holiday on his billionaire friend's yacht.

- Dire economic record -

But Hollande, 60, has hardly fared better than Sarkozy, now 59, in the economic sweepstakes, with record unemployment and growth hovering around zero.

Only on Tuesday the Socialist government narrowly won a parliamentary vote of confidence in its economic reform path after Hollande vowed to press ahead with controversial spending cuts and tax breaks for companies.

The shift towards the centre led to an emergency reshuffle last month, with the Socialists' left flank likening Valls to Britain's Tony Blair.

Neither Hollande nor the man France calls "Sarko" can claim legions of fans.

On top of Hollande's dire economic record, revelations about his calamitous love life have dogged his image, and his bland manner is in stark contrast to Sarkozy's dynamism.

On the other hand, two in three French people told pollsters they do not want Sarkozy back in the Elysee Palace.

The son of a Hungarian immigrant is expected to be crowned the head his UMP party with little resistance in late November.

But looking ahead to a possible presidential run in 2017, Sarkozy has a much longer row to hoe.

While many UMP stalarts are devoted to him, he has fearsome rivals within.

Chief among these is Alain Juppe, a popular politician and one-time prime minister who served as defence and then foreign minister under Sarkozy. He has announced he will stand for UMP primaries planned for 2016, with a view to a presidential run.

Polls suggest Juppe is the favourite among the French even if Sarkozy remains the most popular within his own camp.

- 'Sarkophobia' -

Sarkozy has largely remained out of the public eye since his electoral defeat, only making appearances in carefully orchestrated outings such as at the concerts of his singer wife, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy.

But he has stayed in the news, not least because of a myriad of ongoing legal investigations that involve him in one form or another.

He was charged in July with corruption and influence-peddling related to his alleged attempt to interfere in a judicial case.

There are also legal questions around the financing of his 2007 and 2012 campaigns that could come back to bite him.

Philippe Braud, a professor at France's prestigious Sciences-Po university, said a presidential run by Sarkozy in 2017 "will revive the 'Sarkophobia' front which is still very strong in France."