“Republican” action
Torra rejects a return to regional governance and aims to recover self- government under the mandate of October 1 to reverse CUP’s abstention
A government that undertakes “political and republican action” within a “provisional” mandate. The JxCat candidate for the presidency of Generalitat Quim Torra, gave a speech yesterday designed to seduce the CUP which demands that any government must accept and reaffirm the democratic mandate of October 1 to build an independent and republican state. Torra’s message was that the process is still in vigour, but the political “internal” priority in the short term is the recovery of self-government, promoting social policies and the generation of wealth for redistribution. As he had promised, he directed an offer of dialogue to Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy in Spanish and in English and to the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, asking the head of the Commission to allow European institutions to mediate.
Carles Puigdemont was also “present” in that Torra claimed his “legitimacy” as president and in the fact that Puigdemont, in an interview with La Stampa, stated that Torra could call elections on September 27 if there is no change from Madrid.
Torra promised among other things the recovery and expansion of the foreign representation of the Generalitat which had been axed under 155.
As expected, Torra did not have the necessary absolute majority in the first round and his candidature was rejected by 66 votes in favour, 65 against and four abstentions from the CUP, which was only guaranteed until yesterday. What will happen in Monday’s vote is still up in the air, despite that fact that Torra will need only a simple majority to be voted the 131st President of the Generalitat.