Murcia talks to the press about the situation

Following his dismissal from the government team, Aurelio Murcia has spoken out to the press.

He told them that the week had been busy for him because every day he’d attended the trial of the former mayor, José Joaquín Moya in place of Charo Bañuls who he says was too afraid to go.

He went on to explain that, on Thursday a policeman came to his door to tell him the news that the PP had decided to break the pact between them and the Liberals and that he would no longer have a position on the Bigastro town council. Murcia says that he was dismayed the news could not have been given to him face-to-face by Bañuls herself who he describes as “cowardly” .

With reference to the pact between his party and the PP, Murcia says that it was never signed by Charo Bañuls because she did not want to commit to conditions set out. In fact, if we refer back to the pre-election manifestos of the two parties, there were irreconcilable differences so it was no surprise that neither party would choose to fully commit to a binding pact.

Regarding his negotiations with the PSOE, Murcia says that Bañuls already knew about them. The differences between Murcia and the PSOE surely prevent any lasting relationship between the two so that was a bit of a red herring.

Murcia concluded by saying that the PP will be looking to set a millionaire budget and take out loans which will endanger financial stability for the town.  

The situation as it stands is that the PP will be trying to rule with a minority of 5 councillors. Even if the Liberals abstain from voting, the PSOE will defeat every proposal with their 6 votes. In Murcia’s view, the decision taken by the PP to rule in the minority will paralyze the town. 

To be fair, the remarks that Murcia made to the press last week about the amount of work he did in comparison with the mayor and his proposed changes in salary were hardly likely to cement relationships between the two of them. In my view, his pronouncements backed Charo Bañuls into a corner leaving her little choice but to take the action she did. Feigning innocence in the circumstances seems to me to be a little far fetched. 

One thing you can say, political life in Bigastro is rarely dull. Now, the ball is back in Bañuls court, we will wait to see if she can continue the rally.