Pedro Sánchez's campaign script is very planned, designed to the millimeter with the pretense of always taking the political initiative and imposing his social democratic agenda in the social and electoral debate. The President of the Central Government began by raising the flag of public housing and continued with his commitment to public education and professional training. All watered down with a shower of millions which, after the announcement, was then approved by the Council of Ministers. And after the parenthesis of the controversy over the inclusion of exetarres in the Bildu lists, with which the Popular Party tried to overshadow its campaign strategy, Sánchez now puts all the focus on another of the emblems of social democracy: public health.
Yesterday Sánchez took advantage of his speech at a rally in Valencia, in front of the largest public of supporters to date in the PSOE campaign - 6,000 people, according to the organization - to announce that the Council of Ministers will approve on Tuesday "the most investment important in primary care that has ever been done", with up to 580 million euros.
"We must defend public, free and universal healthcare in our country. Because the worst enemy of the national health system is not viruses or diseases, but the cuts that were applied with the neoliberal response to the financial crisis", said the leader of the PSOE.
Sánchez recalled that his predecessor in Moncloa, Mariano Rajoy, imposed on the autonomous regions a cut of 10 billion in social spending in 2012: 7 billion in public health and another 3 billion in public education. And the pillar that most weakened his "neoliberal dogma", along with public health, was that of primary care, as he highlighted. The injection of 580 million that he announced will serve "to strengthen, strengthen and modernize" the 13,000 primary care centers in Spain.
The Council of Ministers will approve this investment as a "finalist match" for the autonomous communities to modernize and improve primary care infrastructure and equipment.
The local authorities, which have competence in the matter, will have to allocate these 580 million to finance new physiotherapy, radiodiagnosis and emergency rooms, "to avoid waiting, saturation or unnecessary travel", according to the Government's plan.
On 28-M, said Sánchez, citizens will have to choose "between public health and cuts and privatization, between the right to health or the business of health". "Voting the PSOE is voting for public health!", he cried.
And he contrasted his commitment to public health, and the management of socialist regional presidents such as Ximo Puig, to that of the PP where he governs. He gave the example of the management of Isabel Díaz Ayuso in Madrid: "The community with the highest income per capita and the lowest health expenditure per inhabitant in all of Spain", he denounced.
The PSOE also contrasts the "positive and exciting campaign that we are leading with proposals designed for the people", with the "boomerang campaign" that they attribute to the PP. "His own strategy has turned against him", warn Moncloa and Ferraz, following the electoral use of terrorism that they attribute to him. And they assure that also in the PP "they are puzzled by the lack of reach of Feijóo, cornered between the sword of Ayuso and the wall of Vox". "It is a mistake and has ended up turning his own campaign into another internal mess", they point out.
At yesterday's rally in Valencia, only Ximo Puig alluded to the Bildu lists controversy, but to denounce "the atrocities" that the PP says. The Valencian president assured that he will never understand "the moral baseness" that, in his opinion, the main opposition party is flaunting.
Sánchez's electoral caravan will go to Valladolid today, where new announcements are expected. "Feijóo will have a very long campaign", warn Moncloa.
