Lucia Mendez Madrid
Madrid
Updated Monday, April 8, 2024-02:16
Gabriel Rufián joins his position today as spokesperson for the ERC parliamentary group in
Congress
, after a paternity leave - his second child was born at the end of January - which has been shorter than what the father had planned.
Rufián
has brought forward his return to the political front line because the functioning of the parliamentary group has suffered from his absence, since the Catalan scenario is very different from the one he left when his son was born. At this time, Pere Aragonès decided to call the regional elections for next May 12.
All the parliamentary sources consulted agree that
Rufián
's temporary withdrawal has been very noticeable in the day-to-day parliamentary work of ERC. "There has been a vacuum in the presence of the Republicans in national politics because the group without it has not worked well, Junts has benefited from this gap to stick its head out and show off," say interlocutors from the groups that support the Government. by Pedro Sánchez. The spokesperson anticipates his return to revitalize the work of
ERC
in Congress, at a time of difficulty, since the voting intention polls for the Catalan elections are not very favorable for the Republicans.
Gabriel Rufián
is a very popular politician who in recent years has made a name for himself in the complex and difficult national politics.
ERC
has suffered from a decline that has coincided with important debates, such as that of the Amnesty Law or the negotiation with the
PSOE
of some Government initiatives. The president of ERC, Oriol Junqueras, has had to travel to
Madrid
on several occasions to put order in the parliamentary group and underline the role of the Republicans in laws such as the amnesty, given the true fear that Junts would appropriate what ERC He had negotiated before with the
PSOE
.
The ERC spokesperson in Congress represents the most social soul of the party, which is why the pro-independence faction does not view him favorably, to the point that they have asked for his head more than once.
Rufián
has accumulated important political capital as Catalonia's interlocutor in Madrid and partner of
Pedro Sánchez
. A historic role that was left vacant by the great spokespersons, first of the Catalan Minority and then of CiU, when
Pujol
's heirs
decided to throw themselves into the mountains of the process. For this reason, he has consolidated his position despite internal criticism.
Precisely the bad relationship between
ERC
and
Junts
is, according to government sources, also at the root of the division that exists among the Republicans. «The leaders of ERC have a kind of complex with Puigdemont, they try to emphasize every day that they are more pro-independence than anyone else so that they do not accuse them of being weak in front of the State, and that leads them to initiatives like Aragonès's of removing "walk the referendum so as not to be less than
Puigdemont
."
It is a true fact that, at least in appearance, the former president of the Generalitat seems to have gained strength, thanks to the prominence that the PSOE
has given him
in the negotiation of the investiture and the amnesty. To the point that one of the most relevant unknowns of the Catalan elections is who will occupy second place, behind the sure winner who is Salvador Illa.
Junts
and
ERC
are fighting for this position, and the governability of
Catalonia
may depend on one result or another .
In this context, Rufián
's return
to the stage is relevant because the parliamentary spokesperson is clearly committed to closing the past of the
process
and looking to the future. «He thinks, and he does not hide it, that you cannot speak to the people in the same way in 2024 as in 2017. And that
ERC
has to do politics thinking about the social, in being more leftist than pro-independence. While many other organic leaders of the party are betting on the opposite," say parliamentary sources well connected to
ERC
. That is why from time to time voices come out questioning the spokesperson.
Gabriel Rufián
is almost the only
ERC
leader who has publicly stood up to
Junts
and its leader. The last time was in March 2022, when he denounced Junts' contacts with the
Kremlin
. «They do not represent us. "They are young men who walked around Europe meeting the wrong people because, for a while, they thought they were
James Bond
." The statements caused a brawl with the Junts leaders, also caused internal criticism, and forced him to clarify. Although its central thesis of the ERC-Junts relationship has not changed: «There is a pattern, which is repeated, and that is that Junts can talk about ERC, it is normal, but if we respond it is a
Vietnam
. And that's why we don't respond."