The leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has assured in Ceuta that his "first task" if he reaches the Palace of Moncloa will be to "recover normality" in the autonomous city after the "invasion" at the end of July, something that, in his view, involves the departure of the "15,000 people" who entered irregularly and remain in the city. In this context, he has announced that he will promote a new Immigration Law that "allows for the immediate return" of the irregulars.
"This will not happen again," Feijóo has guaranteed at a pre-campaign event alongside the Ceuta president, Juan Jesús Vivas. This is already his fifth visit to the autonomous city since the entry of about 80,000 migrants from Morocco on July 30 and 31.
The PP candidate for the Presidency of the Government has traveled to Ceuta with several electoral commitments. Thus, he has reiterated that his "first specific task will be to recover normality" and has criticized the lack of response from the government of Pedro Sánchez in recent weeks. "My first trip as a candidate is today to Ceuta and if the Spaniards support me, Ceuta will be the first folder on the table of the Council of Ministers," he has promised.
Feijóo has emphasized that he will not "ignore" what is happening in the city nor will he "hide it," since, as he has insisted, normality has not been "recovered" because "there are still 15,000 people in Ceuta who have irregularly invaded the city." "The only solution to this situation is that the 15,000 leave Ceuta and leave Spain. That is the only solution and that is my commitment," he has stated.
"The only wall" and the new Immigration Law
At this point, the president of the PP has committed to a "new Immigration Law that allows for the immediate return of all who enter, whether by land or by sea." In addition, he has defended effective control of the Ceuta border without delegating it to the neighboring country, better planning, more advanced surveillance systems, the expansion of the Tarajal breakwater, and "using all the instruments that the Constitution offers if necessary in the face of a crisis, including Article 8."
The leader of the opposition has denounced the "abandonment" of Ceuta by the Executive of Pedro Sánchez. "The only wall that the Government has to defend is its border," he said, adding that "unfortunately Ceuta is not the exception of this stage" that they are "leaving behind" but rather a further symptom of "the decay, of the corruption and of the lie" in which the head of the Executive has "sunk the entire nation."
Plan for Ceuta: unique military base and new infrastructures
Furthermore, Feijóo has announced that the PP is drafting a "real plan for Ceuta" —coordinated by the PP's Deputy Secretary of Finance, Juan Bravo, and the Deputy Secretary of Sectorial, Alma Ezcurra— with the aim of preventing "any transgression" of the border from being repeated.
This plan for the reactivation of Ceuta includes more doctors and healthcare personnel, the construction of 8,000 homes, a new police station, a new command of the Civil Guard, and "a unique military base to concentrate all the Armed Forces' personnel in Ceuta."
He has also proposed a specific taxation for the Ceuta digital economy, tourist investments in the Parador, and measures to retain talent through more resources for employment, training, and the port.
The president of the PP has reiterated that the border with Morocco must be further reinforced and that the Army must have the condition of authority, something that, as he recalled, has already been supported by Parliament at the initiative of the Popular Group.
Feijóo has reiterated that the autonomous city will be "a permanent priority" if he reaches Moncloa and has added that he will work to ensure that it is also a priority for the EU. "In short, that no circumstance turns Ceuta into a second-class city," he emphasized.
"Statists" versus "escapists" and the rift of the Sánchez stage
The leader of the PP has maintained that Ceuta symbolizes the "deep rift" that Sánchez's government stage leaves in the country, but he has emphasized that "the good news" is that they are still on time to close it with the ballot boxes, for which he has called for maximum mobilization on the next November 29.
"Nothing moves me more than being able to say that soon Ceuta has regained normality and that one day Spain will do so too," he stated, adding that Spain "cannot be in the hands of escapists any longer" but "needs statists."
Feijóo has emphasized that Ceuta and Melilla are Spain "since five centuries ago and will continue being Spain in the coming decades and in the coming centuries." "80,000 Spaniards have had to defend themselves practically alone from an attack on their territorial integrity that has lasted more than two months. This will not happen again. Because this is turning one's back on the citizens," he has criticized.
Cross with the Minister of Finance and criticism of the "control of the narrative"
Regarding the coincidence this Monday in Ceuta with the Minister of Finance, Arcadi España, who has appeared at the same time from the Government Delegation, Feijóo has assured that the Executive assigns him "day ministers" who accompany him to all the cities he visits.
As he has pointed out, it is "an honor" for a minister to try to "counterprogram the leader of the opposition." "This is a decision of the president of the Government and I am surprised that the Minister of Finance is so servile to the president," he has pointed out.
Finally, he has accused the Government of being more concerned with "controlling the narrative," but never with "controlling the situation." "Neither the border, nor the trains, nor housing, nor healthcare, nor education, nor migration policy, nor the cost of living. Nothing," he has criticized.