Thousands of Spaniards take to the street against Pedro Sánchez: "We want to vote"

MadridBus 37, past seven in the evening, was packed with people carrying Spanish flags who were approaching Plaza Cibeles in Madrid. There were quite a few who approached the driver –who answered kindly– to find out where it was best to get off to attend the rally in support of Ceuta. There was no specific pattern: people of all ages, young and old, who the moment they joined the mass of people already at the Puerta de Alcalá did not hesitate to shout the slogans: "Pedro Sánchez, son of a bitch" or "Resignation" of the Spanish government. In this way, in Madrid and dozens of other cities across Spain, thousands of people demonstrated over the crisis in Ceuta and turned the indignation over what is being experienced in the autonomous city into a cry against the Spanish government. A mobilization –called by the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), presided over by the PP– that took to the streets the political message that the right wanted. Alberto Núñez Feijóo, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, José Luis Martínez-Almeida (PP) and Santiago Abascal (Vox) made an appearance at the Madrid rally, while some PSOE leaders also mobilized, ignoring the socialist leadership because they considered that this Wednesday, Ceuta Day, they had to take to the streets.

"Everything will be known," warned Feijóo in statements to the media during the rally, and accused the Spanish government of "lying" and hiding an "invasion" by Morocco in Ceuta. The PP leader arrived just in time for the Cibeles rally, as he had traveled to the autonomous city just hours earlier to support President Juan Jesús Vivas in the institutional acts. "Pedro Sánchez is not in a position to guarantee Spain's security," stated Feijóo this noon in the autonomous city, and made it clear that, in the PP's view, the "only way out" is to hold immediate elections to "give the voice to the people."

The slogan of the protesters at the Plaza de Cibeles in Madrid, where according to the government delegation about 50,000 people gathered, was precisely "We want to vote," as they blame Pedro Sánchez for everything. This was exemplified by the comments made among the protesters: "Sánchez is sold out," "These people cannot go out on the street," or others from people who, with resignation, commented that despite everything, the PSOE leader will hold on. For Santiago Abascal, who made statements to the media before the demonstration began, Pedro Sánchez is a "dangerous psychopath": "His permanence in power is an authentic threat to a national sovereignty in the hands of foreign governments and to the territorial integrity of Spain." "Invaders, expulsion!" the protesters also shouted regarding the migrants in Ceuta.

However, at the end of the demonstration, the PP did not emerge unscathed from the chants, as some of those gathered also directed themselves against the Popular Party members: "They are the same filth." In fact, no chants of "Feijóo, president" were heard, and only a few voices could be heard pronouncing Ayuso's name. Later, the atmosphere became even more strained towards the Carrera de San Jerónimo, in front of the Congress of Deputies, where the police had to intervene with pepper spray and make several arrests.

The reply on behalf of the Spanish government was made by the Minister of Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, who is also responsible for the single command over Ceuta. “Nothing new. Since the first day [Feijóo] has been calling for elections over any matter”, he replied from the autonomous city, where he also attended the institutional act with President Vivas and led a coordination meeting between all administrations. The PSOE also reacted, accusing the PP of taking "political advantage" of the crisis: "Being with Ceuta is not about using its pain" .

The day in Ceuta

The president of the PP took advantage of the press conference he already had scheduled in Ceuta to apply more pressure. He sees it as "essential" that judicial responsibilities be assumed following reports suggesting that Morocco is behind the crisis: "It cannot remain unpunished." For this reason, he has also demanded that the Spanish government summon the Moroccan ambassador to Spain "immediately" to ask for explanations regarding the role of the Alawite regime on July 30 and 31, and that it recall the Spanish ambassador to Morocco for consultations "to evaluate the most appropriate measures."

However, Juan Jesús Vivas made a cry for help: "Ceuta cannot continue living in a pressure cooker that could explode at any moment –he expressed–. It is in serious danger."