This Saturday the new Ciudad Real Provincial Council was constituted after the municipal elections on May 28, which will be governed by PP and Vox.
After the constitution of the Table of Age, the inauguration of the deputies and deputies that will make up the Provincial Corporation in this legislature was passed. The deputy general secretary of the provincial Institution then warned that a crucifix had been requested for the moment and it was necessary to wait a few moments until it was placed next to the copy of the Constitution.
The PP will have 11 deputies, two Vox and 12 from the Socialist Party and the right-wing pact has changed the provincial government after 24 years. Miguel Ángel Valverde will be the new president thanks to the support of the extreme right that will have two vice presidencies occupied by the two deputies that Vox has, Milagros Calahorra and María Jesús Pelayo. Both have chosen to swear their position this Saturday and Pelayo did so as a “provincial deputy.” A masculine formula that is often used by the extreme right.
Facing the Presidency of the Provincial Council, two candidacies were presented. That of the mayor of Bolaños de Calatrava, Miguel Ángel Valverde and that of the PSOE councilor in Herencia, José Manuel Bolaños Viso. All that was necessary was a first vote by show of hands. The ‘popular’ Valverde won 13 votes from the PP and Vox to reach an absolute majority and received the baton from the outgoing president, the socialist José Manuel Caballero.
They have slipped, and it will be due to the proximity of the elections, information or interested stories that stir the ghost of fear and steps back
The change occurs after years of “monocolor” governments of the PSOE in the Ciudad Real Provincial Council, as Miguel Ángel Valverde repeated on several occasions. “The voters of the province of Ciudad Real have wanted this majority to conform,” he assured, when thanking the extreme right for their support.
Valverde has come to the fore in his speech about his pact with Vox. “They have slipped, and it will be due to the proximity of the elections, information or interested stories that stir the ghost of fear and steps back,” he said, referring to “aid to different sectors or to the claim of rights and freedoms for the change of government. The new president has assured that “we live in full democracy” and that “the steps forward will only consolidate”.
Valverde recalled that he started in politics as a councilor in 1995 and that he has been mayor since 2011, in addition to having been a senator. “It is an honor”, he commented, to preside over the institution “to help make life better for the people of the province”.
It will do so, he said, “once the turbulence of other not too distant times has ended, in which some political parties and some national leaders wanted to put an end to it, arguing that it was of little use and the cost to our State. They even proposed its removal.
“What a great ignorance!”, he lamented, to add that “I do not agree at all and I do not think that any of those who are going to be in this plenary room are” because “the Provincial Council plays a decisive role in the structuring of the territory and its development”, he assured.
In his opinion, the role of the provincial councils involves “guaranteeing the provision of mandatory minimum municipal services and the principles of inter-municipal solidarity and balance.” In addition, among the objectives will also be that of “intensifying the fight against depopulation”.
Redefinition of government areas, without mentioning historical memory
Valverde has defined himself as “a convinced municipalist” and has taken the opportunity to outline some of his priorities that will begin by “redefining” the areas of government and justified it: “We have been seeing how several of the services provided by our Provincial Council have weakened with the gradual loss of human resources that has jeopardized the provision of some of the services or that, in the best of cases, has made us lose opportunities for growth”.
He has cited as “fundamental” the reinforcement of the advisory service to local corporations, especially for smaller towns, optimizing the function of organizations such as consortiums or continuing to strengthen direct aid programs for towns.
It has announced an “additional effort in the integral water cycle, particularly drinking water” to alleviate the lack of efficiency in the distribution networks. In this regard, he has recognized that the people have “difficult” to deal with the investments that, he maintains, “should have come through European funds.”
He also cited the demographic challenge of which he says, “requires intervention with a territorial perspective” after the “failed” attempts to stop depopulation in previous legislatures. “Something is not being done well, even acknowledging the difficulty in the effort.”
It pleads for “shared strategies and integrated approaches with a regional perspective” and for “strengthening local action groups”. He has also cited his intention to support “traditions” such as bullfighting or hunting.
A few days ago, the outgoing president of the Provincial Council, José Manuel Caballero, expressed his confidence that the new PP and Vox government would not endanger projects such as the exhumation of mass graves “for ideological reasons”, after having received a new batch of almost 400,000 euros. for these purposes from European funds.
“Let no one be confused and let no one confuse”, Valverde said without expressly citing Caballero’s words, “the Provincial Council will be behind the support of all kinds of entities, organizations and institutions”, he said, although without referring to one of the government emblems of the previous government team, the ‘Memory Maps’ project, linked to the recovery of historical memory.
