The first vice president and counselor of the Presidency, Health, and Emergencies of the Junta de Andalucía, Antonio Sanz (PP-A), defended this Wednesday that the government agreement reached for the current legislature between PP-A and Vox provides "stability" to the autonomous community. In parallel, the deputy general secretary of PSOE-A, María Márquez, reproached him that what the president of the Junta, Juanma Moreno, considered to be "a mess" —referring to the option of governing in coalition with Vox— is now presented by PP-A as "the solution" for Andalucía.
During a statement by Sanz in the Plenary of the Parliament, requested by the Socialist Group, both leaders confronted their positions on the pact between PP-A and Vox. The deputy socialist spokesperson censured that in the PP-A they have "changed" their stance to the point of justifying a joint government with the formation of Santiago Abascal.
The first vice president recalled that the PP-A achieved "an extraordinarily broad majority" in the regional elections of May 17, although "insufficient by two seats" to repeat the absolute majority of the previous legislature. Faced with that scenario, he explained that there were only "two possibilities": "block Andalucía" and force "a repeat election," or "dialogue, negotiate, and reach agreements," the option that PP-A and its leader, Juanma Moreno, chose.
In this context, Sanz emphasized that, as the Andalusian president stated, Vox was "the only formation" that showed "willingness to dialogue to allow the start of the legislature" after the elections of 17M, something that, he stressed, "must be appreciated." In his opinion, "it is quite difficult to understand that those who voluntarily renounced any possibility even of dialogue are now seemingly upset because there has been a solution" and "question the result" of the negotiation between PP-A and Vox.
The popular leader emphasized that the government pact has been signed between "two different political formations, with different projects," which forced the opening of "a negotiation" to "bring positions closer, agree, find points of convergence."
"That is the good work that has been done between Vox and the Popular Party," Sanz stated, who highlighted that Moreno's Executive has the support of the "broadest parliamentary majority" that a Andalusian government has had so far. In his view, "that is stability, trust, security."
In that line, he highlighted that the agreement includes the approval of the Budgets for the four years of the legislature —fiscal years 2027, 2028, 2029, and 2030—, something that, he said, "is very good for Andalucía" because it facilitates "planning investments" and generates "certainty" for families, companies, and administrations. In contrast, he reproached that Pedro Sánchez's Executive has not managed to push through the General State Budgets so far in the legislature.
Sanz claims the "transparency" of the agreement
Sanz also assured that the pact "does not replace the project that the Andalusians supported" at the polls, but rather "makes it possible to execute it, adding the important contributions that have been made in favor of the functioning and stability of Andalucía" through this understanding between PP-A and Vox, which, he emphasized, is "transparent" because "it is published" and can be consulted by "all Andalusians".
After rejecting "lessons of stability" from PSOE-A, he proclaimed that, with the agreement between PP-A and Vox, "Andalucía has a government, direction, and four years ahead to prove it".
For her part, María Márquez replied by recalling previous statements from Juanma Moreno in which he admitted that the political ideology of Vox kept him "awake at night", accused that party of not knowing how to "govern" and of proposing "illegalities". The socialist leader questioned "how they have changed" in PP-A and lashed out at the vice president for defending the pact.
Thus, she criticized Sanz's "role" in justifying the agreement in parliamentary session. "To get up to the podium to make the intervention that you have made, you have to have a lot of stomach, the one you have to defend absolutely the indefensible," Márquez shot back at him, reproaching that "what a few months ago was a mess, a problem for the Andalusians, and was bad, now is 'what we need as Andalusians'."
Criticism from PSOE-A: "the PP has eaten the pact with potatoes"
The socialist spokesperson maintained that the "only irrefutable truth" is that the PP "has eaten the agreement with Vox with potatoes", and accused Moreno of having "lied to the face of all Andalusians" by attending his investiture debate claiming "in the morning that he wanted a monochrome government", but announcing "when the debate ended" "an agreement with the far right with 150 points conditioning the future of Andalucía".
In this framework, Márquez defended that from the PSOE-A "at least" they demand "explanations" about the government pact, and accused the popular party of having disrespected "the respect" to the Andalusian Parliament, the seat of the "sovereignty of the Andalusian people".
The deputy general secretary of the PSOE-A also stated that in the PP-A they feel "shame" for the agreement and warned Sanz that "no matter how much public money they spend trying to cover the sun with a finger, there is no money or phone calls" from the first vice president "to the media to try to erase Mr. (Manuel) Gavira from the picture", since the Andalusian leader of Vox "is sitting to the right of the 'father'" —referring to Juanma Moreno— in the hemicycle.
Márquez also reproached the PP-A for having signed "the most reactionary pact" between the popular party and Vox "in the whole country", and criticized that Moreno allowed that, while in the Andalusian Parliament "they were debating about the future of Andalusia" during his investiture, "in an office in Madrid, the far-right that never respected the Statute of autonomy" decided that "nothing of what was happening here mattered, because the pact was signed in Madrid, by their hand, how and when they wanted".
"This was the Andalusian way, gentlemen of the Popular Party, to allow those who renounce Andalusia to trample our flag," launched the socialist spokesperson, who warned Sanz that "the price that this land is going to pay will be written" in history "as a black page", and that the signed agreement "is not good for Andalusia, because, if not, they would have made an effort to tell it".
To conclude, Márquez stated that "the centrist, progressive Andalusians, who voted in good faith for Moreno have seen how their vote has become the key for the far-right to enter the government of the land of (Manuel García) Caparrós", the one that "has always boasted of the rights and freedoms" that, in his opinion, the signatories of this "shameful pact have blown to the winds". "Gentlemen of the right, Andalusia will never forgive you," he emphasized.
In his turn to reply, Antonio Sanz stated that "who it seems the Andalusians have not forgiven is the PSOE for the years of deception" during the "40 years" of socialist governments in the Junta, and defended the measures included in the coalition agreement, which, he claimed, benefit the Andalusian citizens.
Finally, he claimed that, "without a doubt," Andalucía "is doing much better with Juanma Moreno as president," because the community "is advancing more than ever and has the best future ever thanks to the policies that his Executive has promoted." In contrast, he attacked the central Government that "applauds" the PSOE-A —referring to that of Pedro Sánchez— which he accused of "betraying Andalucía."