Isabel Díaz Ayuso has not disappointed the public, her own, who came to listen to her at Plaza Artós in Barcelona, the place where the first demonstration of young people against the independence movement took place in 2017. With a harsh speech against “separatism ” and also against Pedro Sánchez, the Madrid president has highlighted the need for the PP to have a good result to confront “totalitarianism” in Catalonia, and the “corrupt business” of the independence movement.
The PP landed in Plaza Artós with the aim of contesting a sector of the Vox vote, which will close its campaign in this same space. Ayuso's intervention this Monday was focused, on the one hand, on pointing out that socialist and independence policies – from the ideological to the economic sphere – are those that have led to a “decadence” in Catalonia and, likewise, to a loss of leadership in Spain, which Madrid now has. For this reason, he has opted to apply his liberal recipes in Catalonia, so that both communities "continue to grow hand in hand, without political interference, without confrontation, without victimhood." He has drawn Catalans “stitched” to taxes and a society in which many have had to leave, some bound for Madrid, to be “free.” Many Catalans flee, he has said, “from totalitarian environments that tell them all day long what to do.”
The political profile that Ayuso sets fits well with the ideology of the candidate, Alejandro Fernández, who has addressed the young people who in October 2017 organized the first protest to ask everyone to act “without fear” like them so that Catalonia recovers the leadership he had. The PP is fighting for a part of the vote on the border with Vox and given the resistance that the polls give to the far-right formation, the popular ones have especially targeted the young electorate.
For this reason, Ayuso has also warned that “dividing the vote” makes us lose strength. The PP, the Madrid leader recalled, must have the key to the political future in Catalonia.
The Madrid president considers that Catalans are supporting policies based on victimhood, confrontation, and whining, which is why she has called for this “tap” to be cut off, understanding that they are sinking citizens. After proclaiming “Enough!” To these policies she has indicated that the usual Catalonia must return. “Spain cannot endure this pain,” she stressed.
More Spanish than Catalan flags were seen at the popular event, which was preceded by a tour by Ayuso and Alejandro Fernández along Calle Major de Sarrià, the commercial hub of this neighborhood. The walk lasted more than an hour, with many requests for selfies, some stops at shops and a brief meeting at the Tomás bar - known for its bravery - to address the situation of the union.
The tour passed calmly, both for those who welcomed her and for some who discreetly wondered what the Madrid president was doing there. The PP is looking for the streets this campaign since it needs to mobilize its voters - more inclined to become active in the general elections. They wanted to have Ayuso, who will return precisely to liven up the walk and, also, to address the most Spanish vote.
