Natalia Puga Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela
Updated Friday, February 9, 2024-01:53
18-F Ana Pontón: "We cannot be even a millimeter behind what Euskadi and Catalonia achieve"
He is the visible face of
Sumar
's first test after 23-J and he is so confident that he will be key in a future three-party progressive government that the Spokesperson in Congress has left. She already sees herself
as a councilor and representative of
Díaz
's policies
in
Galicia
.
It speaks of a future three-legged progressive government. And, if it enters, it would be the weakest force. How do you approach a campaign from that perspective? Size may not always be the determining factor. The determining factor is the type of policies you want to make;
Sumar
does not want a government of three so that nothing changes or for things to go slowly, we want transformative policies like those we do in the Government of Spain. Greens, feminists, labor.
In the face of this three-party government, would you have any demands?
I promise to sit down. I am a person of dialogue and negotiation. We will have to reach a programmatic agreement on which policies we do or do want to carry out. Adding is not a force of words, but of actions, of commitments to people. Do you see yourself as
a counselor
?
I have management experience, I know the challenges that this means and of course yes, I see myself in a government, in a
Ministry
or in a Vice Presidency. Or both.
Do you think it would be easy to understand each other?
I think so, that what is important is the content, the policies, that is what has to take precedence. My maximum commitment is precisely the agreement. He already has experience
with the
PSOE
. And with
Ana Pontón
?
I'm sure we can agree. Our country needs a government of women, of feminism. I hope that Mrs.
Pontón
also understands that it is time for women's government.
What would that Galicia be like governed by
BNG
,
PSOE
and
Sumar
? Because the
PP
talks about
noise
.
I believe that the hubbub
Rueda
is talking about is not wanting to listen to Galicians who when they call primary care and ask for an appointment, there is a waiting list. Barullo is not talking to the regional firefighters, not talking to the
Enfermeiras en loita.
The noise is not understanding that Galicians know that the PP and Rueda are dismantling essential services, which turn care and dependency into a business.
Do they have a non-aggression pact on the left?
We are not wrong about the political opponent and Sumar's is clearly the PP, regardless of the fact that each of the progressive forces has different programs.
He has said in the campaign that there are voters who vote for Sumar or do not vote, what do they offer that other parties on the left do not offer?
Unlike
PSdeG
or
BNG
, we want our policies to step on the accelerator, to make major transformations in housing, health, education, care. Other progressive forces are not so inclined towards municipalization or the public recovery of the services that the PP has privatized. We have an ambitious mental health program that sets us apart. Feminism and defense of
LGTBIQ+
rights
is another of the flags.
Do you trust the pull of Yolanda Díaz's Galician origin?
We trust that Galician women have long identified
Yolanda Díaz
's style . When she says she is going to raise the minimum wage, she does it, almost 50% since she has been in office. They are useful, indisputable policies, who do not speak of the push for being Galician, they speak for their good practices, for their good political work, for their style.
These elections are being interpreted in a state key. Do Galicians vote thinking about investiture pacts?
July 23 was a very important moment, it seems that no one believed that a progressive coalition government between Sumar and the
PSOE
was possible , I think that Mr.
Feijóo
saw himself in
Moncloa
hand in hand with the extreme right of
Vox
. Now in Galicia we are faced with an opportunity, after 14 years of paralysis, of very regressive policies. If all citizens mobilize and also vote for Sumar Galicia, no vote will be lost, the entire progressive spectrum will expand and we will have a progressive government.
When Rueda called elections, she caught them without a candidate. Do you think that influenced her decision to advance?
I believe that the
PP
and
Rueda
have wanted to advance the elections to a date in which they would go unnoticed, with a very clear desire for demobilization. The
PP
's message
is that few people vote and I respond to Rueda that I think that calculation is going to go wrong and that we are in the countdown to a historic change.
Do you also believe, like other forces, that
Feijóo
overtook them ? I believe that Rueda
is
the
unelected president
of
the
lies and the manipulation of the PP with the pellet crisis and has taken to the streets to demand decent public healthcare. I think that is an obvious sign that people want a change.
Will the result affect the future of the parties at the state level?
I don't know, we'll have to wait.
And what about the future of
Sumar
? It is the first territory in which they test their project.
I am convinced that Sumar is going to obtain positive results and that will be an indicator that Sumar continues to be a necessary force.
She appeals to her Government experience, as a councilor in
Santiago
. Are you preparing a town hall for the Xunta?
It is an experience that allows me to have the knowledge, solvency and prudence to, with humility, know that I can be in a Xunta government and do it well.
You left Congress, where you were spokesperson and had a guaranteed record, for an uncertain future. Was the decision hard?
These Galician elections have made me feel challenged and take a step forward to go with everything and to be convinced that my career and my profile can be optimal for these elections.
If you don't get into Parliament, what would you do?
I don't consider that option.
Until recently, she was Sumar's spokesperson. They are a party critical of corruption and, nevertheless, they are going to amnesty embezzlement.
Sumar is one of the most coherent political forces in the amnesty debate. With the
PP
at the helm, stirring things up, we have spent too much time straining the political climate, the relations between
Catalonia
and
Spain
, and I have no doubt that the instrument to resolve political problems and guarantee coexistence is amnesty.
Do you think they should be harsher in their tone with the PSOE in the Government?
We are a responsible coalition government, we always have been and we will continue to be, but that does not take away our firmness and it never takes away our demand to comply with a programmatic agreement that we have with the government. I think that
Yolanda Díaz
and the entire group of
Sumar
ministers exhibit that firmness
every day.
There are sectors of the left that accuse you of not differentiating yourself from the
PSOE
, do you have a problem?
I do not identify those sectors. I think it is very clear how far the
PSOE
is capable of going and how far it is not capable until we step on the accelerator, until we demand to go further.
What should your relationship with
Podemos
be like , should we seek agreements with them?
Add
For some time now it has always looked to the future, from a transformative political agenda. Spaniards need to see that politicians do high-level politics and everyday life, we solve their problems. And Sumar is here to solve the problems for workers, for women, for the people who need it most.
Do you think that the
Podemos
leadership sabotaged the pre-agreement to attend together in
Galicia
?
I am not going to go into what the explanation or internal logic of other forces is either. In any case, we are already at a different stage of the campaign, where we see that we play a decisive role for that three-party government, for that political change and to put on the table a transformative and brave agenda for Galicia.
However,
Pablo Iglesias
did get involved. He posted a tweet evaluating the debate and saying it was the worst.
I think that the sometimes exercise of machismo that certain people who are in charge of the media can have are unfortunately part of the political-media ecosystem that women often have to simply ignore and not comment on. And I'm not going to make any comments.
Why doesn't Sumar hold primaries to make lists or elect candidates?
Sumar is in the process of construction. Sumar Galicia has a political impulse body,
Rueda
advanced the elections and we have responded with capacity and diligence, as we have done in the general elections. We have this entire political course to build our organization, so that no one worries that our mechanisms are transparent and accountable.
You are at the political presentation with Errejón at the founding assembly of Sumar. What will this assembly be used for?
The assembly serves to mark the role that we want to play as the left of the great transformations and that we are already an example and vanguard in Europe of many policies. The political presentation is fundamentally a political work guide to continue advancing rights and freedoms.
Let's make a prediction. Is the result of these elections going to be comparable to that of 23-J?
I'm not much for making bets, but I am convinced of a great predisposition to this change, that Galicia is a living society that advances, compared to a PP that is not always in tow, that builds that kind of
Galicia
that is a little gray or blank. and black that we are going to leave behind because we have a society that is ahead of the
PP
.