JxCat and ERC blame each other for electoral uncertainty

BarcelonaIf there has been a recurring theme in this government's term in office it has to be the constant reproaches between JxCat and ERC in spite of being coalition partners. Now, with the Parliament dissolved and the government still in office, the precautionary suspension of the decree that postponed the elections from February 14 to May 30 is the new excuse to continue in the same vein, even publicly. This time they accuse each other of being responsible for the electoral uncertainty.

In Parliament, the president of ERC's parliamentary group, Sergi Sabrià, has accused JxCat of wanting to "wear down" them by being "both opposition and government" at the same time. "We could call it, to give it a name, the Costa modus operandi" - alluding to the second speaker of Parliament. "We could call him by any name, but perhaps Borràs modus operandi could also work", he criticised, this time referencing JxCat's presidential candidate.

ERC referred to the decalogue that JxCat presented on Monday to vote during the pandemic, which proposed to advance the draw of members of poll stations so that there is time for them to be vaccinated, establish the early vote or vote over two days. Sabrià replied that "90% of the things that on the document are either being done or cannot be done", and added that "it is sad, a little cynical and very bad practice".

JxCat did not hesitate to reply through the MP Francesc Dalmases, who claimed Sabrià's words were an "election ad" and a bit of "nervous campaigning". "He has created the Sabrià doctrine, which is to accuse [JxCat] of disloyalty and cynicism in an act of disloyalty and cynicism".

Also via Twitter, the vice-president of the chamber for JxCat, Josep Costa, has tweeted in defence of postponing the elections, but assuring that "it was foreseeable and avoidable". He has also thrown a jab at the Foreign Affairs Department, which is in charge of organising the elections, and the Health Department, which is leading the campaign against covid.

The controversy is not new, but the tension between JxCat and Esquerra was already over the roof yesterday, in spite of the image of unity that the Minister of the Presidency, Meritxell Budó, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bernat Solé, wanted to show at midday during a joint media appearance.

Open warfare

With the High Court's adoption of precautionary measures against the suspension of the February elecions, ERC passed the bucket to the Generalitat's legal services, which depend on the Presidency, and which had endorsed the decree that postponed the elections - even considering that the risk of the court accepting the precautionary suspension was minimal. Costa, on the other hand, asked that "someone" resign, pointing the finger at ERC ministers, without citing any of them in particular.

At dusk, in declarations to TV3, vice-president Pere Aragonès tried to put an end to the controversy -reopened today- assuring that they had acted following the criteria of the legal services and after a "deliberation" of the whole Government. ERC, however, in addition to pointing out to the legal services, also recalls that if Quim Torra had called elections before being disqualified as president by the Supreme Court, the elections could have already been held. Of course, Torra's argument for not doing so was the incidence of the pandemic, exactly the same one that the Generalitat has now put on the table to opt for the postponement of the elections.

As well as accusing each other, ERC and JxCat also blame the Catalan Socialist Party, which they believe has inspired some of the challenges presented, and also the High Court, because they regret that, once again, the courts will have the last word. And, despite all the public and private reproaches flying both ways, JxCat and ERC claim they will continue to govern together after the elections, be it on February 14 or May 30.