EH Bildu wants a congressional table that “reflects” the results of the July 23 general election: a “progressive majority”. This was announced by the representative of the Basque coalition in Madrid, whose deputies and senators collected their credentials on Monday. In a press conference, Mertke Aizpurua assured that he is negotiating with “PSOE and other groups” for the vote of the governing body of the lower house, said that today they will meet with the Socialists and denied. The hypothesis that the PNV takes the presidency of the Congress: “This issue is not on the table or as a possibility.”
In less than 72 hours, the composition of the table will be voted on by Congress, the fundamental body that regulates the work of the chamber and thereby controls the legislative process. The 23J results set out the complex parliamentary arithmetic in which each MP’s vote will count. Two and a half days after the session, it is not clear who will lead the chamber, nor which party will have this position or what the majority will be in the table.
Aizpurua clearly stated the position of the Basque coalition, which is third in the number of votes in the Basque Country in the 23J elections, but Tied with five MPs from PSE and PNV. In addition, EH Bildu won another Navara seat. In his opinion, the elections showed “the reality of the Spanish state, a plurinational state with peoples demanding their national recognition and the right to make decisions”. “The reality,” he assured, “must be discussed in the new legislature.”
For this, EH Bildu will bet on both the board and the next government to be “progressive” in nature. “We are ready to close the doors on the right,” Aizpurua said. “Our will will continue to be favorable to the formation of a progressive government that can advance socially and nationally,” he added. “We hope that we will all be able to move forward on this path with a high vision and democratic faith,” he said.
The speaker defended the same thesis before the vote on Thursday. “Our will is to reflect the progressive majority that this House has,” he said, “to provide a channel for the debates and decisions that need to happen in the legislature.” The general goals of the Basque Coalition, Aizpurua explained, are threefold: “Improving people’s living conditions; Progress in the defense and national recognition of Euskal Herria and the search for political and democratic formulas for it; and contributing to an open time of peace and coexistence in our country.”
Rejection of the PNV presidency
Negotiations to reach an agreement have already started and this Monday EH Bildu will meet with PSOE. “I am absolutely confident that we are going to reach an agreement,” said the spokesman, who noted that the talks are “technical.”
One function of the table is to allow different parties to form a parliamentary group, and while EH Bildu meets all the regulatory criteria, others such as the ERC, a political and electoral ally of the Helmets, do not. In addition, the bureau can accept or reject requests from groups such as the parliamentary investigation into scandals involving King Meritus Juan Carlos de Borbon, or the alleged political espionage of pro-independence officials thanks to the computer program Pegasus. Both requests were not met in the last legislature.
Aizpurua wanted to be tight-lipped about the state of negotiations, but he made clear one option that was open: that an MP from the PSOE or the PP from outside would lead the chamber. Something that hasn’t happened in decades, but it became possible after the leader of the Canary Islands coalition and the president of the islands, Fernando Clavijo, came forward.
Clavio said that if the PNV takes part as the chairman of the chamber, his deputy will support him. One spot that, given Yount’s current uncertainty, could be crucial.
Aizpurua assured them that “as supporters of independence” there is not much “value” to them, recalling that the PNV has had representatives on the Congress table before, though never leading the chamber. When asked about a specific possibility, he explains: “My impression is that this issue is not on the table or as a possibility.”
The Basque speaker wanted to assess the weight of the six deputies of EH Bildu, which was added to ERC and BNG. “Sometimes we forget that the total number of left-wing sovereignty is 14 deputies. Here we are all necessary and decisive,” he concluded.
Source: El Diario
