Mazón shakes off responsibility and refuses to give new explanations to Congress about the DANA

Madrid"Who can expect much from this individual when he should have resigned on October 30, October 31, or November 1, 2024?". With these low expectations, the relatives of the victims who died in the DANA (flash floods) faced Carlos Mazón's second appearance in Congress, gathered at the doors of the lower house to demand answers from the former president of the Generalitat. The result was as expected, with Mazón once again shrugging off responsibility and refusing to provide new explanations, with an impassive demeanor, in the face of questions and attacks from the spokespersons of the parties of the plurinational majority in the investigation commission. "I refer to my initial statement" was the phrase most repeated by the former Valencian president to escape the questioning. And what did he say in his initial statement? Right from the start, Mazón argued that he is exonerated by the decision of the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community (TSJPV) to refuse to investigate him. "It completely rules out my responsibility," he asserted.

The former Valencian president even claimed that there is a "firm ruling by five magistrates" that exonerates him, even though he has never been tried and the TSJPV's pronouncement is an interlocutory order that rejects the attempt made by the DANA investigating judge at the Catarroja courts, Nuria Ruiz Tobarra, to have the politician from Alicante investigated for reckless homicide and injuries and failure to render aid due to an action she described as "negligent inactivity." The judge could not take the step herself because Mazón remains immune from prosecution as he keeps his seat in the Valencian Parliament. In this regard, the victims' associations have demanded that he "leave politics now" so that "the judicial process can continue." The former Valencian president took a year to resign—he did not take the step until November 3, 2025—and, in the words of Rosa Álvarez, spokesperson for the Association of Victims of the 29-O DANA, it was "a false resignation".

"He is better off than before, getting paid as a former president, occupying seat 98 without going to anything [...] it is a true shame. If he does not want to cause more harm to the families, he should leave politics once and for all and leave us in peace so we can begin the mourning that we have not yet been able to start," Álvarez emphasized. The same message was conveyed by Mariló Gradolí, spokesperson for the October 29th DANA Victims Association: "It is disgraceful that Mazón continues to be paid by the Valencians and continues to lie from a public office [...] He must clarify all his lies and manipulations." Inside the commission, several left-wing deputies echoed these words from the victims, which were spoken outside the Congress. The ERC spokesperson, Gabriel Rufián, read questions from people who lost family members in the tragedy —"do you regret anything? would you change anything you did?" or "if it rained today like it did that day, would exactly the same thing happen?"— without Mazón responding.

Rufián's intervention was one of the most tense moments of the appearance, given the prolonged silences of the person being questioned in response to these questions with a heavy emotional burden. The republican labeled Mazón a "negligent, useless, reckless homicide, and psychopath" amidst complaints from PP deputies, who closed ranks with the former Valencian president and interrupted the questioning on numerous occasions. Compromís deputy Alberto Ibáñez was also one of those who most raised his tone against Mazón when he reproached him for the messages he exchanged early on the morning of October 29th via a WhatsApp chat with his ministers. "Nothing more sadistic, cruel, and useless," retorted Ibáñez regarding the message, known within the framework of the investigation by the judge of Catarroja, in which Mazón asked to "flood the media with data" because that gives off a "feeling of being on alert that scares the hell out of you."

Mazón has repeatedly refused to make "any public statement" that expands on the explanations regarding his actions on the fateful October 29th, 2024, until the investigation by the judge of Catarroja is finished. The former president of the Generalitat has argued that he already sufficiently clarified his role in the previous appearance on November 17th, 2025.

Mazón has clung to the argumentation of the TSJPV, which refused to investigate him, arguing that he "did not commit any infraction [...] in matters of emergencies because he has no specific duty in this area". "The regulations are very clear," stated the former Valencian president, who insisted that "under no circumstances" did he lead the emergency response.