actualidad

‍ ​ ⁣ The Deputación de ⁢Lugo is ⁢set too hold an‌ remarkable plenary session this Wednesday to appoint a successor to José Tomé, who resigned following accusations of sexual harassment aired on a television program ​and through the PSOE’s internal channels. Burela’s mayor,⁤ Carmela López, ratified by Ferraz on Monday, has been designated by the party⁢ to fill the position. She will require the⁢ vote of the governing partner,the BNG—which has already ⁤confirmed its support—and that of Tomé himself,now an⁤ unaffiliated deputy.⁢ The President of the Xunta, ​Alfonso Rueda, ‌has⁢ challenged the Socialists, and particularly the BNG, to act with “coherence” and not support someone they “denounced” ‍simply to maintain the provincial government.
​

​ The “immediate” resignation of the⁣ former president was a demand from the nationalists to avoid breaking the coalition government⁤ in which they are a​ minority partner. The accusations against⁤ Tomé surfaced ‌on the night of December 9th, ‍during the ⁣ Código 10 ​ program ⁣on Cuatro. the following day, Tomé, provisionally suspended ‍from PSOE membership, ⁤announced that he would only resign from his position ⁣as ⁣head of the provincial council, while⁤ continuing as mayor⁢ of ⁤Monforte—the second largest municipality in the province—and retain his seat as a deputy.
⁤

⁣ The long-time‍ power‍ broker ‍for ​the party‍ in⁤ Lugo was slow to make ​his departure official. On Friday the⁤ 12th, he⁤ still presided over a governing board meeting of the Deputación, which was not attended by the Socialist mayor of Castroverde.The BNG partners refused to sit⁣ and ​announced they would take “measures” if that “nonsense” ‌were prolonged. Hours later, Tomé, in a statement continuing to​ defend his innocence, registered ⁢his resignation, convened the plenary session to‌ make it effective—on December 30th—and set the date for his replacement: Wednesday, ‌January 14th, at noon.

In a session ⁣that lasted‍ only a few minutes, Tomé ​handed over the position to‍ his nationalist⁤ vice-president, Efrén Castro, a ​role he had ⁣held since 2019.this was⁤ followed by another ⁤ordinary plenary⁤ session in ⁣which the former vice-president sat in​ the ⁤seat usually occupied by the Socialist ⁣spokesperson, Pilar García Porto, who took ‍the seat to⁢ his left. On Monday afternoon, Socialists and⁢ Nationalists held a meeting at the Deputación, after which‌ the BNG announced its⁤ vote in favor ​of Carmela López.

The PP Accuses of a “Pact of Shame”

⁣ The accusations against Tomé triggered an internal storm within⁤ the PSdeG, ⁣including the resignation of the Secretary of Equality, ‍Silvia fraga, after the party‌ leader,‌ José ⁣Ramón Gómez Besteiro, admitted knowing about the accusations “through a third party” in ​october. Prominent socialist activists—including, ⁤most notably, ‍the mayor of A Coruña, Inés Rey—launched a manifesto demanding firm, transparent, and coherent action from ⁣the leadership to “maintain public trust.” ⁤The Galician leadership declared the crisis closed with the celebration of an extraordinary National Committee ⁤meeting this weekend, were ​over 40 people spoke.⁢ “The conclusion is clear: the leadership acted correctly as no one raised a different way of acting,” ​Besteiro stated on ‍Monday.

⁢ Almost simultaneously, the president ⁢of the‍ Xunta shifted the focus ⁢to the BNG, stating that “from the PSOE side,⁢ we‌ already know there will be no coherence.” He challenged the nationalists to maintain ​the​ same position ⁤they had taken throughout the situation ‌“at the decisive moment”—the election of⁤ the new president.

⁣ “I hope there isn’t a gigantic exercise ⁤in⁤ hypocrisy by agreeing to govern with those they were going to remove,” he said,adding that “it ‍truly seems a tripartite agreement could emerge between the PSOE—or what remains of it⁢ in Lugo—the BNG,and the person⁣ causing all this,Mr. Tomé.” If that happens, he‌ asserts, the BNG will lose not only “coherence” but also “legitimacy.” The provincial Popular Party went further, referring ​to such an agreement as⁤ a “pact of shame.” In the⁤ same statement announcing its support for López, the nationalists ⁣accused the PP of using “a sexual harassment complaint as a weapon” ⁣to “try to reach​ a government it did not achieve in the municipal elections.”
‍

⁤ The ⁤Popular party’s ⁤challenge​ is not entirely disinterested: they hold‌ twelve of the 25 seats in the ‍Deputación. Without an agreement between the current partners, they would have enough‍ votes to govern the ‌provincial council ⁣alone,⁣ which ‍they lost in 2007 ‍after 24 years under Francisco Cacharro Pardo, one of the “caciques​ de la boina”‌ (traditional political bosses). Another internal crisis within the PSOE allowed elena Candia, the current president of the PP of ⁢Lugo, to head the provincial council for ​three short months in 2015, until Socialist waters calmed down. since then, the Pazo‍ de ⁤San marcos has become a priority‍ objective for the Galician‍ PP, and ⁣Tomé’s fall has reignited their desire to⁤ recover‍ it.