“The central government would not ask for greater collaboration. I would ask for any collaboration.” They were the first words that Alberto Núñez Feijóo pronounced when he visited Valencia on October 31, 2024, after the floods that caused 228 dead. That day, the leader of the PP launched a strategy to blame the central government of the tragedy and wash the image of the president of the Generalitat, Carlos Mazón, who spent the afternoon of the Dana in a restaurant with a journalist and then in an unknown whereabouts. Less than a year later and before one of the largest waves of registered forest fires, the first opposition party replicates the method: point to others to exempt their responsibility from their own.
It was done this Monday the PP parliamentary spokeswoman, Ester Muñoz, who accused the central government of not making all his means available to autonomic executives, responsible for both the prevention work and the off fires. “The requests of the most effective of the Armed Forces are not being incorporated through the UME,” Muñoz denounced, who also blamed the government for not accessing Russian hydroAvions, with greater water transport capacity. The EU has established an embargo on Russia for the invasion of Ukraine.
In the same press conference, Muñoz said that communities have deployed 100% of their anti -capital means. But also the central government. The spokeswoman also acknowledged that the emergency military unit is completely deployed, as well as the BRIF. He even assumed that no more military unit is prepared to attack fires such as those in recent weeks. Even so, he asked: “Why are there no more means? Why is the requests of the communities attend?”
Feijóo already did it with very similar words in 2024 on account of the DANA, when he said that the regional presidents “do not have all the tools” to deal with their own powers.
Something similar to what happens now with fires, according to the PP thesis. “You can dedicate many resources to prevent,” Muñoz said. “What is difficult is to find out that there are going to be people, fell on the whole territory,” he said. Muñoz said that there are “groups of young people who burn for fun”, which makes it impossible to anticipate.
Muñoz also attacked the president of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, to propose a State pact against the consequences of climate change, although he did demand a state pact to improve the financing of the autonomous communities.
However, neither the regional presidents nor the PP consider asking for level 3 of emergency, which would force the central government to assume all the powers and centralize the tasks of extinction. In Castilla y León and Andalucía, Alfonso Fernández Mañueco and Juan Manuel Moreno, respectively, face elections in the coming months. María Guardiola rules in a minority and with the extended budgets, while Alfonso Rueda has in Galicia the clearest path and her electoral horizon goes to 2028.
The Government defends the deployment
From the government, while, they demand that the PP stop using an unprecedented crisis in the fight against fire. After the invitation of Pedro Sánchez this Sunday to the set of political forces to reach a State Pact in the face of the effects of climate change, several voices of the Executive reproached on Monday to the popular who do not hesitate to articulate a confrontation strategy while Spain burns.
“The only way against the fires so extraordinary that we live is to use until the last available resort from the State and the EU. Although doing so a week later, it is possible to welcome the rectification of the Government and ask that it be completed,” said Feijóo written on his Twitter account on Sunday. Some statements that have not liked in the Executive.
“The Feijóo are irresponsible statements. What they have to do is close their shoulders,” said Minister Óscar López, who also demanded the regional presidents who assume their responsibility and do not drain the bulk of the management. “Autonomous communities are a state. And regional presidents are not commentators or Tertulians, they are presidents that have obligations and that they have competencies. And all of Spain knows that autonomous communities have powers in prevention and extinction,” he said.
In the same line, the First Vice President, María Jesús Montero, who compared the attitude of the popular regional presidents with Carlos Mazón's management in Dana's management was also expressed. “The PP throws balls outside and does not assume its responsibility. When they are badly given, as in Valencia or now with the fire, they are inhibited from their own responsibilities and try to blame the Government of Spain. And it is irresponsibility. First, because the competences reside in the communities. And second, because the citizens do not understand that when the water comes or fire, some dedicate themselves to confronting no longer try to stop the crisis,” Montero said.
What they maintain in the Moncloa is that it is “a bully” that the government has not made available to communities all the resources available from day one. “All the available means of the State are at the service of the Autonomous Communities. And it is the Autonomous Communities, within the framework of their powers, which have to decide that the command passes to the Government of Spain if they consider that they cannot exercise control,” Montero stressed.
The socialists also affected the words of the PP spokeswoman, Ester Muñoz, in which he accused “youth groups” of being behind the fires “for fun.” The socialist youth described those statements as a “shame” and demanded a rectification. “Socialist Youth demands from the Popular Party a rectification after the statements of its spokesman, criminalizing youth for fires. Young people do not burn forests for fun, they are at the foot of the cannon fighting the fire.”
The Government details that the personnel of the military emergency unit are 100%deployed: more than 1,400 military in direct attack deployed; up to 2,000 in support and relay missions, and 450 media (machinery, drones, etc.). From the Air Force there are mobilized personnel specialized in support of hydroplaravions (5 pilots for water discharges, mechanics and co -drivers). Of the Army, 500 military activated, 25 analysts and support personnel activated 24 hours. Of the Navy, 100 military operating for logistical support to the evacuees. In addition, according to the Executive data, the helicopter battalion has 150 mobilized troops.
But not only the Ministry of Defense contributes personnel and media, according to Moncloa's inventory. From the Ministry for Ecological Transition, 56 deployed media, ten helitransported brigades with 640 forest firefighters, four integral prevention equipment and seven mobile analysis and planning units have been made available to the Autonomous Communities.
In addition, more than 5,000 mobilized civil guard agents, 350 national police officers and more than 200 civil protection troops are added from the Ministry of Interior. The Government ensures, on the other hand, that Spain already receives the largest contingent of international aid in history with four aircraft, four helicopters, four firefighters and 190 troops from France, Italy, Netherlands, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Germany and Finland.
