Statue of Carla Bruni Sarkozy as a worker angers France But when French daily Le Parisien on Sunday revealed the plan for the statue more than six-and-a-half feet tall, at a cost of over 80,000 euros (£67,000), the opposition and even the first lady's friends were up in arms. Modelling "is her former job, she no longer does it commercially, but she's often asked to do it, and she often agrees, and always without being paid," the source said. William Geib of the Socialist opposition said the idea of dressing up a likeness of the Italian heiress and pop singer as a worker was "grotesque." It's an insult to the Italian feather workers, to give them the face of an extremely rich person. I have nothing against Carla Bruni-Sarkozy but she does not represent the workers' world. Michel Gilles, a local member of the right-wing opposition, slammed what he said was a "political coup" ahead of the April-May two-round presidential election, which opinion polls say right-wing leader Sarkozy is likely to lose. Martin said he voted in favour of the statue at a council meeting last year. "But it was never mentioned that it would have Carla Bruni-Sarkozy's features," Gilles said. The statue is reportedly costing 82,000 euros, of which the town hall is paying 41,000 euros, and exactly what it will look like is being kept top secret.