The president of the EBB of the PNV, Aitor Esteban, believes that it was “absolutely necessary and obligatory” for the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, to submit his resignation, “and even more so for the PSOE in the midst of the pre-election campaign” for the general elections of 29 November.
In statements to TVE, collected by Europa Press, Esteban has recalled that the PNV already spoke out “very clearly” calling for the assumption of political responsibilities “from the very first moment” in which the serious accident in Urda (Toledo) occurred.
As he pointed out, “two accidents of this magnitude in these terrible circumstances (also referring to that in Adamuz) require that the public have the assurance that there will be a technical review and the technical corrections necessary”.
Along these lines, he defended that it was also necessary “the image that political leaders take a step aside”. “Therefore, I think the resignation was absolutely necessary and for the PSOE even more so in the pre-election period,” he emphasized.
The jeltzale leader stressed that it was “absolutely mandatory that Óscar Puente” step aside, and he focused on the advisability of “changing a few things, whether the government is one color or another, because for many years emphasis has been placed on generalized discounts that have, in some years, even amounted to more than maintenance investments”.
Esteban reiterated that “discounts are fine when it comes to frequent travel, when discrimination can be made on the basis of income,” but he criticized that “this kind of indiscriminate discounts” had been applied “on a network that needed maintenance”. “All of the infrastructure issue needs to be reconsidered very thoroughly,” he underlined.
Appointment of Carlos Cuerpo
Regarding the appointment of Carlos Cuerpo to head the Ministry of Transport, he said that the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, “is getting by for the time being in this way,” “instead of appointing another minister, who could be for a month and a bit or for two months”.
“I think it’s fine, because Carlos Cuerpo is an objective, calm person, with poise also in front of public opinion, and it seems to me a decision that is perfectly understandable,” he said. However, he believes that if the next Executive “were led by the PSOE, Cuerpo would not be the person who would manage this portfolio”. “So this is something circumstantial,” he added.
The president of the EBB has admitted that in this pre-campaign they have already been surpassing “many screens,” by placing at the center of the discussion matters such as that of Ceuta, the Maricarmen case and housing, the disturbances “in quite a few cities in the State, accompanied by what was happening in Europe,” and now the accident in Urda, which “has been a shock” and has brought to mind the one in Adamuz from this same year.
“Therefore, the screens are changing. I believe that all of them are very important matters, that we should address in the campaign, but I understand that events often rule, and that in the media it is as if some issues had been forgotten and no longer matter or as if they had happened several years ago,” he said.
Esteban believes that, when the campaign officially begins and takes “speed,” in the last fifteen days, “all these issues will come out into the public debate,” although he also does not rule out that “surprisingly” some other event might occur that is not suspected now and goes to the forefront of the debate.
Criticism of the PP and the use of immigration
The president of the EBB of the PNV has also referred to the presence, this Wednesday in Vitoria, of Badalona’s mayor and head of the list for Barcelona to the Congress, Xavier García Albiol, and has interpreted that they place him there where they consider there might be “a certain breeding ground” to “generate tensions and unnecessary hatred.”
In his view, “the migratory phenomenon is there” and must be addressed “from objectivity, from humanity,” and also “from human rights and democracy.” “That means being able to integrate the people who are here, who have come. For example, working in black instead of being regularized made no sense,” he stressed.
In his opinion, to “integrate well, you have to be capable of providing an adequate level for the native population and for those who want to integrate, in housing, in healthcare, or in education.”
For that, he insisted, “planning is needed,” something the Spanish Government “has never done, despite the fact that it has been urged again and again.” To move forward on that goal, he estimates that the autonomous communities “must receive competencies.”
“We don’t like the models; we don’t want to create models like the Parisian ‘banlieues,’ and sometimes, for example in Vitoria, I’ve had the feeling that the Socialist Government has wanted to push for a model like that,” he stated.
After emphasizing that the PNV is not in agreement "with something like that," it has warned that it also does not share "this generation of hatred and of artificial controversy that the Partido Popular intends to create."
On the other hand, it has urged the PP to "get its act together," because the PP's general secretary, Miguel Ángel Tellado, "says that voting for the PNV is voting for the PSOE, and yet, the president of his party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, states that 'voting for the PNV is voting for Bildu.'"
It has assured that the jeltzales have "very clear ideas" and has argued that Euskadi needs its own representation, "not only for a specific moment and the election of a president of the State government, but for four years and to defend the positions" of Basque citizens. It has also underlined the need to "put your foot down" and establish that "the lines should not and cannot be crossed, and to do so in a reasonable way."
Esteban has recalled that is how he acted when the PP asked him for the support of his five deputies to form an executive that would depend on Vox. "The PNV told him no. We are clear that we are not going to support a government that needs a majority in which Vox is present. I say it this clearly and decisively," he has reiterated.
Midterm elections in the US
Asked about the outcome of the midterm elections in the US, which has allowed Democrats to wrest control of Congress from the Republicans, Esteban has pointed out that "the effect" of those elections "may reach Europe, but it will not arrive right away," but rather it will take years to become noticeable.
The PNV leader has expressed satisfaction with the results, "an absolutely disruptive element" for "global democracy." "I'm glad that Americans have woken up," he said.
Lastly, he has indicated that it will be necessary to wait to see how the situation evolves, although he has warned that "it's also not easy with the presidential system, because the president's right of veto is very powerful." In any case, he has said that "you can tell that the wave was very, very big." "I think that is good for democracy, for human rights and for Europe," he concluded.