The unavoidable responsibility of forming a government
Three months after the elections to the Catalan Parliament, the negotiations to form a government are not progressing and all the signs point to new elections needing to be called. All this at an extremely delicate time for our country, when a serious economic downturn is gathering pace, when the pandemic has left so many families devastated, so many people out of work, so many companies in a precarious situation and under threat of disappearing. In other words, when the need for a government that takes the helm and tries to provide the best possible response to the set of problems we face as a society is greater than ever.
As citizens of Catalonia, we believe that this paralysis is unacceptable. The results of the elections showed the fragmentation of Catalan public opinion and, therefore, the difficulty of investing a government with a solid majority. Even so, there are two possible majorities: one pro-independence and the other left-wing. Not all options are comparable and our preference is clear. Even so, and beyond our preferences, we understand that at this moment it is a priority to have an executive capable of assuming the responsibilities that for too many years have not been exercised with sufficient vision and efficiency.
It is not acceptable, therefore, to give up now on forming a government. We believe that at this moment some parties are putting party and personal interests ahead of the needs of the country and speculating with the option of new elections to see if they can improve their positions on the political chessboard. With this attitude they are eroding the authority and prestige of a Generalitat that is everyone's institution, weakening Catalonia's position in relation to Spain, Europe and the world, and discrediting the task of politics in a way that would make the abstention of part of the population in possible new elections more explicable, along with the growth of authoritarian options that unfortunately are already present in our Parliament.
For all these reasons, we call on the parties with possibilities of uniting government majorities to renounce the game of mutual exclusions and the idea of new elections which could worsen the situation, and to reach an immediate agreement to facilitate the formation of an executive determined to respond to the many issues for which it is needed. We find it totally unacceptable and nationally suicidal that, in the name of a future independence for Catalonia, steps are being taken that undermine the production of wealth, social cohesion and the capacity for self-government.
This effort we are witnessing to create a "narrative" that allows us to attribute all the difficulties to political opponents is fooling fewer and fewer people. Therefore, we now call on those who have institutional and political responsibilities - starting with the Parliamentary Speaker - to demonstrate the statesmanship they so often demand, to fulfil their obligations and to put the strengthening of the institutions before their party and group interests. This is the mandate that our parliamentarians received on 14 February. This is the citizens' mandate. Whoever is unable or unwilling to fulfil it, should take a step back
*PRÒLEG GROUP was formed in February 2018 with the aim of recovering spaces for democratic dialogue in Catalonia and the other peoples of Spain. It is made up of people on the Catalan left who do not support independence. Its current members are Jordi Amat, Marc Andreu, Marga Arboix, Oriol Bartomeus, Laia Bonet, Joan Botella, Victoria Camps, Joan Coscubiela, Jordi Font, Mercedes García-Aran, Oriol Nel·lo, Raimon Obiols, Lluis Rabell, Joan Subirats, Marina Subirats and Josep M. Vallès.
