Aragonès calls for the resignation of the Minister of Defense while the independence movement pressures him to break with the Government

The ‘Catalangate’, the espionage of dozens of pro-independence politicians allegedly at the hands of the secret services of the State, has given the morning session of Parliament an intensity that has not been seen since the peak times of the ‘procés’. There have been expulsions of deputies, dialectical confrontations and requests for resignationlike the one made by the President of the Generalitat, Pere Aragonès, with respect to the Defense Minister, Margarita Robles.

At the same time, the independence movement has continued to pressure Aragonès to resign from the dialogue table with the Government that ERC defends against all odds since the beginning of the legislature. Both the CUP and Junts have asked the ‘president’ in the control session to take “concrete” and “forceful” measures against the Executive center after espionage.

“A few minutes ago the guardian of the sewers, Margarita Robles, recognized the use of Pegasus. The Generalitat warns of consequences. Specificity is needed: what consequences?” asked Eulàlia Reguant (CUP). “You cannot continue to support this government that violates rights”Albert Batet (Junts) later insisted.

Faced with this situation, Aragonès has placed the resignation of the Minister of Defense almost as a demand on Pedro Sánchez. In fact, he addressed the Spanish president directly when he said: “The Minister of Defense must assume responsibilities, and if she does not want to, I remember that there is a Prime Minister who gave him confidence and he’s not responding.”

They all referred to Robles’ statements in Congress, which had taken place minutes before, justifying the alleged espionage. “What does the state have to do when someone declares independence?” the minister had said.

When the leader of the PSC, Salvador Illa, has tried to calm things down and has offered to collaborate to clarify the espionage, Aragonès has replied that it seemed that he was thinking more about the support of the Government in Congress than anything else. “Are we good enough to vote in favor of government initiatives in Congress and bad enough to be spied on?” the ‘president’ replied sarcastically.

Robles “bombs”

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Despite the fact that Aragonès has not gone further in terms of the specifics, he has warned Illa that if the dialogue table does not bear fruit it is not the Generalitat’s fault. “It cannot be that the Minister of the Presidency speaks of restoring affections and that of Defense bombards any possibility of understanding. The responsibility, if things do not go as the majority wants, is not mine, but of a Spanish president who must take measures For now he has not taken them,” he said.

Before, at the beginning of the session, the ‘Catalangate’ had already caused the expulsion of the deputy of Cs Matías Alonso from the hemicycle. The president of the Chamber, Laura Borràs, had previously read a statement by the Board of Spokespersons on espionage, and the representatives of the orange party have complained loudly about it. “I know quite a few of your constituents, stop embarrassing them in every plenary session“, Aragonès has complained later.