The president of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, claims that the Government had prior information about the migration crisis that this Thursday led 50,000 people --according to the Government itself-- to cross irregularly from Morocco to the autonomous city of Ceuta, and has criticized that it did "nothing" to prevent it. At the same time, he considers the subsequent decision of the Government to install maritime barriers "ridiculous."
"We have the right for the Government to tell us why it did not act knowing what was going to happen," he pointed out at a press conference in Ceuta alongside the president of the autonomous city, Juan Jesús Vivas. "We want to know if the Government was aware, as it seems to indicate, for days that (this) was going to happen," he reiterated.
The leader of the PP questions that "all the intelligence services" of the State failed at the same time and did not detect in advance that "thousands" of people were heading towards the Spanish-Moroccan border. "Answering this corresponds to the Government," he emphasized.
Likewise, he has again described the Government's actions as "ridiculous," which this Saturday began to deploy a containment barrier of 500 meters at the maritime pier of Ceuta.
An indolence that has been long-standing
"If buoys are valid now, why weren't they put in place much earlier?" Feijóo has raised, who has recalled that in 2021 "between 10,000 and 15,000 people" accessed Ceuta and, in his opinion, "nothing" has been done until 60,000 have entered. "The indolence has been long-standing," he pointed out.
Feijóo has also reproached the Government for leaving the management of the crisis "to the mere will of those who have occupied the city," instead of fully exercising the powers that, he argues, correspond to it to safeguard territorial integrity.
"What a responsible ruler would never do is delegate their obligation to resolve the situation to the mere will of those who have occupied the city," he stated.
The 'popular' leader maintains that a "responsible" Government must go "beyond urgency" and detail "how Spain has gotten to this point," in addition to admitting that the State "lacks an effective response to protect this border."
"That there are thousands of citizens who fear for their integrity in Spanish streets is a shame. That there are thousands of families who feel abandoned in their own country is a shame," Feijóo has denounced, expressing his recognition to the Security Forces and Corps.
It is they, he has emphasized, "who are containing, with an enormous effort and manifestly insufficient means," a situation that, in his opinion, "is not just another incident," but "a premeditated and unprecedented occupation of a Spanish territory" that was not "unforeseeable" because, he has insisted, "this threat" was "known."
Recovering order, authority, and the border
"Spain must recover order and authority," he has underscored, before specifying that this implies that "those who have occupied Ceuta must leave," responding with "firmness" to any attack on territorial integrity and applying a migration policy that "makes the State stronger." "The territorial integrity of Spain is not negotiated, it is defended," he has reiterated.
Feijóo has also emphasized the need to clarify "what has failed in cooperation with Morocco," although he has advocated for maintaining a relationship based "on mutual respect, cooperation, and good neighborliness" with the neighboring country.
In his view, this collaboration must be based on "reciprocity, transparency, and good faith," and he has emphasized that Spain "has the right to demand" that Morocco also fulfills its commitments in controlling the shared border.
Spain and the European response to the crisis
"SPAIN MUST NOT ISOLATE ITSELF FROM THE EU"
In his appearance, Feijóo has also warned that Spain "cannot face this crisis by confronting those within the European Union who demand a more united, more effective, more orderly, and firmer migration policy."
In this regard, he has assured that he maintains contacts with European leaders and has defended that the migratory pressure that Ceuta suffers is also "a problem of the European Union." In his opinion, the Government should not "isolate itself from the Union and much less boycott it," but rather strengthen the borders "with the same determination and resources" that, he has indicated, other community partners use.