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  • Politics.Inés Arrimadas denounces that Pedro Sánchez did not propose anything to her and now calls her to another appointment next week

The serious crisis of the Covid-19 froze the way out of the Ciudadanos crisis just four days before it held its general assembly, originally scheduled for the weekend of March 14 in Madrid, the day the state of alarm was decreed. . The most important congress of the liberal party, that of the succession of Albert Rivera and that of its re-foundation after the electoral debacle of November 10, was put on hold due to the health and economic catastrophe that swallowed everything.

Inés Arrimadas was chosen in the primaries just the previous weekend. And he took possession without an official act or speech on March 14, the same day that all of Spain shut himself up at home and held his breath before the approval of democracy's second alarm state.

A month and a half later, the new Executive has decided to hold its congress, even if it has to be 100% telematic. The conclave begins on April 30 and ends on May 3. The venue of the event will be on the computers of the more than 500 delegates who will participate. The liberal party will thus hold the first fully telematic national congress to hold a party, without a physical venue and with meetings and presentations through the Zoom platform, as management sources explain to this newspaper.

The assembly will elect the new General Council - the highest organ of the party between congresses - and will approve the Statutes and strategy papers. Sources consulted, both by management and critics, see little chance that amendments not supported by management will be approved.

Management sources explain to EL MUNDO that they have decided to hold the assembly now because it is better for Cs to have all its regional and local bodies renewed before August. From leaving the congress until after the summer, the party would go almost until Christmas to renew all its levels.

Some sources of the critics, nevertheless, think that it is a mistake to make the congress now. In his opinion, the absolute priority of the party should be Covid. And they do not understand that the Executive wants to "be distracted by internal issues" when Spain experiences a situation of unprecedented health and economic crisis in democracy.

The vice president of the Junta de Castilla y León and the main reference point for the critics before the crisis, Francisco Igea , has not even registered as a compromisario. In his environment they explain that he is "100% focused" on the fight against coronavirus in his region, one of the most affected in Spain along with Madrid and Castilla-La Mancha .

The assembly will be held in four days - from Thursday to Sunday - so that the delegates, confined to their home, will be able to connect several hours each day to participate. On Thursday the 30th the management report of the Manager and the report of the accounts will be presented, which will be presented by the first deputy secretary, Carlos Cuadrado . Later, both will be voted.

Some critics reject its celebration when all efforts should focus on the fight against Covid-19

On May 1, the amendments to the two papers - statutes and strategy - will be presented and defended. Given the overwhelming victory of Inés Arrimadas in the primaries (she obtained 77% of the votes), no one doubts that her party model will also win by a landslide, as vertical and hierarchical as the one chaired by Albert Rivera, although with little winks to the militants , such as the creation of a participation area. The delegates will be divided into Zoom rooms to discuss the papers and their amendments from home.

On Saturday May 2 -festivo in the Community of Madrid-, they will vote. Finally, on Sunday 3, the 125 elected members of the new General Council will be voted. Although the lists are open, closed plates are voted, with which critics consider that 99% of their members will be Arrimadas supporters throughout Spain. As a closing of the assembly, the president of Cs will make a speech from her home that can be followed on YouTube by all the supporters or voters.

The budget of the previous assembly, which was to be held at the Palace of the Dukes of Pastrana , in Chamartín (Madrid), amounted to 100,000 euros. Now the congress will cost zero euros to the party, as they explain from the new direction.

The same sources add that the intention of Inés Arrimadas is to hold a political convention after the summer, as soon as possible, to relaunch the training with a massive public event, probably in Madrid. Although there is still no date or program for this physical reunion of the Andalusian leader with her supporters.

Unanimous support for the current strategy

There is unanimity in all sectors of Citizens to support the current strategy of reaching out to the Government that Inés Arrimadas is carrying out. Both the environment of Igea and the spokesman for Citizen Commitment , Juan Carlos Bermejo , coincide in highlighting that Arrimadas is right "by putting Cs at the center again", fleeing partisan interests in the face of an unprecedented catastrophe in Spain.

Since the crisis erupted, Arrimadas has reached out to Pedro Sánchez. It was the first to propose the reconstruction pacts that all parties will now explore. And week after week he has made health, economic or social recovery proposals to the Executive.

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  • Citizens
  • Spain
  • Inés Arrimadas
  • Albert Rivera
  • Pedro Sánchez
  • Coronavirus
  • Covid 19
  • Lockdown

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