Sílvia Orriols to Salvador Illa: "Thanks for the budgets"

BarcelonaThe two councilors of the PSC of Ripoll who allowed Sílvia Orriols to approve the budgets thanks to their abstention were leaving office on Monday amid reproaches and with a clear warning to the party. "We want to state that the local branch does not share this decision in any case; what's more, it is in absolute disagreement. There is no member of the list who has shown any predisposition to take over from our councilors. This is a decision made unilaterally by the national leadership of the PSC," stated Enric Pérez and Anna Belén Avilés in a joint statement. In summary, the two councilors warned that no one from the candidacy would take over from them. Orriols resorted to irony in Wednesday's control session in the Parliament, thanking the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, for what the socialists are doing in Ripoll: "Thank you for the budgets, but above all for having dismantled the PSC, which has been a masterstroke," he snapped.

In any case, if any of the other fifteen members of the socialist list agree to become a councilor, what will happen? Would the municipal plenary be reduced to 15 representatives out of the current 17? Would the other parties share the two vacancies? Nothing could be further from the truth. The electoral law (Loreg) contemplates this situation, which is not exactly common. Specifically, it is regulated in article 182. The first point details that in case of death, incapacity, or resignation of a councilor, the seat is attributed to the candidate or, if applicable, to the substitute on the same list to whom it corresponds, according to their order of placement. This is supposedly not the case in Ripoll.

The second point of this article does contemplate what may end up happening in Ripoll. If no one accepts the position, any citizen could end up being a councilor without needing to be from Ripoll. Thus, the Loreg determines that "in the event that there are no possible candidates or substitutes to be appointed, the vacancies will be filled by any adult citizen who is not subject to a cause of ineligibility." "These substitutes," establishes the electoral law, "will be designated by the party, coalition, federation, or group of voters" that has been left without representatives. That is, by the PSC.

The socialist leadership has already taken the first step by dissolving the local group and creating a management board, which will be responsible for finding people to fill these vacancies if needed. If successful, the PSC must inform the corresponding Electoral Board who its councilors will be so that they are granted their credentials. In this case, the law makes it clear that individuals who, having been candidates or substitutes on the list, have previously resigned from their position cannot be appointed. In other words, if someone resigns now, they cannot backtrack later.

Ripoll enters the plenary

Beyond Orriols' ironic thanks, Ripoll has re-entered the Parliament's plenary session. In fact, the far-right pro-independence leader has taken the opportunity to point out that "ERC would have abstained if the PSC had not done so" and that "the councilwoman from Ripoll stated as much," thus recommending that the Republicans "take the same path as Mr. Illa and also dismantle the ERC group." But she didn't stop there and recommended that the CUP and Junts do the same, "because they have voted in favor of many of Aliança's proposals" in the capital of Ripollès. The mayor feels strong knowing that, during the term, most of the opposition councilors have resigned and that no party, except hers, will repeat its lead candidate next year.

On the other hand, it was the leader of the Catalan PP, Alejandro Fernández, who brought up the matter before anyone else: "Salvador Illa and Silvia Orriols have agreed on Ripoll's budgets. No matter how much they pretend now, Aliança and PSC have agreed because it suited both of them," he concluded. In this way, he said that when Illa calls Orriols a "bad person" or the mayor calls the president a "jihadist," it is just "theater and hypocrisy" because "if it suits them, they agree": "They are both a scam," he said. Illa responded and reiterated a message against the far-right: "Neither my government nor my party will ever reach any agreement with those who defend hate speech," he assured. He also accused Fernández of "twisting things" and reminded him that the PP agrees with Vox.