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Jéssica Albiach: “Salvador Illa is now a conservative because he is hunting for Citizens’ votes”

Successor of the charismatic Xavier DomÚnech at the head of En Comú Podem in the Catalan Parliament, jassicca Albiach (Valencia, 1979) is the only candidate for the presidency of the Generalitat who publicly defends an entente to govern between her party , the PSC and Esquerra Republicana.

Does governing with the Socialists in La Moncloa and Barcelona City Council reduce their ability to set their own profile against the PSC?

I think not. The legislature is seeing that we are different. We

s we are Republicans and the PSOE is monarchical and is even vetoing a possible investigation in Congress on corruption in the Crown. The differences in the government are evident on issues such as the minimum wage, pensions or rents. Salvador Illa wants Maurici Lucena as economic vice president, who is the Catalan version of Minister Nadia Calvio. And the proposal of Olga Panà © as Minister of Health, I am afraid, would mean perpetuating the health model that we have in Catalonia, a heritage in which there is a network between the public and the private.

Is Illa the candidate of the media and economic powers as Pablo Iglesias hinted?

The good reception it has received from some media is suspicious. And when there are great economic powers that give you so much support, it will hardly be for you to carry out social policies later.

You speak of other possible ways of articulating a left-wing government that would not necessarily go through a tripartite. To which?

In the central government or in the Barcelona City Council there are two forces in the Executive and others from outside, such as Esquerra Republicana, with which alliances are reached. There have been other examples of progressive agreements in the Balearic Islands and the Valencian Community. We do not necessarily have to reproduce the same formulas that were used in the past, since the situation in Catalonia today is different.

Would they reject any pact that implied the participation of Ciudadanos?

Absolutely, because we have very different programs. Ciudadanos is part of the problem in Catalonia, not the solution. With 36 deputies, they have been unable to reach any kind of sum with the rest of the parties. We know that socialists tend to look to their right and, therefore, the guarantee that there are courageous and left-wing measures is that we are in the Government.

Does the approach that Iglesias has made towards the figure of Carles Puigdemont hurt them electorally?

More than a personal or political approach, I see it as the recognition of a situation. If Puigdemont were here, he would be in jail for a crime of sedition unmatched in Europe. That we are not pro-independence does not mean that we have to criminalize that political option.

Does Junts per Catalunya represent an identitarian and exclusive nationalism?

Sometimes yes. Junts and En Comú Podem have absolutely nothing to do with the country project. We want a way out of the crisis from the left, we bet on the dialogue table and they consider it buried. But, in addition, there are public identity demonstrations that are becoming a structural problem for Junts.

Do you see the CUP closer to Junts than to the left wing?

I refer to the facts. In Congress, he voted against the investiture of the Coalition Government and the Budgets and, in Catalonia, in recent years he has invested two presidents of the old ConvergÚncia. Now they also say that they want to form a Government with Junts and give their policies a social footprint, but in previous legislatures they have not been too successful.

Do you think that the PSOE has delayed in an interested way the reform of the crime of sedition and the processing of pardons to the ‘procés’ prisoners?

Looking at the polls, the PSOE is delaying a series of issues, such as the regulation of the price of rent or the issue of prisoners. He is hunting and capturing the vote of Citizens and is being conservative in the measures he proposes.

Esquerra puts amnesty and self-determination as inalienable conditions at the dialogue table. With those red lines is she doomed to fail?

We cannot allow ourselves to fail because it is the only political tool to resolve this conflict. I understand that they raise it as a horizon, but this has to go through an agreement between the two governments that is voted on by the Catalans.

In their speeches they have lowered the demand to hold a referendum. Is it because his social messages had taken a back seat?

We cannot ignore the fact that there is a very serious social and economic crisis, but there is still a territorial problem and it would be a mistake to ignore it. At other times, current affairs have led to issues that are more positioned than others, but we have never neglected social measures. The pandemic has made it clear that social cuts kill. Catalonia is the territory where it was cut the most ten years ago and where it is taking the longest to reverse it.

Do you see a reform of the Statute or the Constitution as a possible way out of the political conflict?

We propose an additional provision in the Constitution that recognizes Catalonia as a nation. From here, we need to address issues of competence, reform an outdated autonomous financing system, promote multilingualism and shield Catalan.

Does the immersion system admit a revision or are you in favor of keeping it as it currently works?

I don’t see any problem with him because he has been a successful model. Some parties have taken the opportunity to attack one of the great consensuses that we had and there are also those who want to appropriate the language as if it were the patrimony of a certain political option.

Are they self-critical about the fact that Vox has increased its support in neighborhoods or populations with low incomes and high rates of immigration?

Sure. We have to do it ourselves and all the parties that consider that Vox cannot be given a democratic footing. Pedro Sánchez was wrong in saying that they showed a sense of state. What must be done is to strengthen public policies, because to a large extent this is produced by the cuts of the crisis, and furthermore, it is necessary to update. This involves understanding that there is also a cultural battle and that a country horizon must be offered, which in our case involves creating a plurinational republic based on the values ​​of freedom, equality and fraternity.

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