Junts per Catalunya (JxCat) and Esquerra Republicana (ERC) are working to put together a Catalan government which meets the "restrictions" imposed by the Spanish state. The spokesperson for JxCat's parliamentary group, Elsa Artadi, has said, in an interview with ACN (Catalan News Agency) that the pro-independence parties are negotiating a high-ranking figure to fill in for the physical absence of Carles Puigdemont in the government palace, once Puigdemont has been invested president again.
Directly asked whether there has to be a new leader with stature in Barcelona if Puigdemont and vice-president Oriol Junqueras remain in Belgium and Estremera prison respectively, Artadi said that "indeed" the work being carried out "points" in that direction, although there is nothing yet finalised.
As such, the debate between the two parties is developing on the assumption that there will be part of the Catalan executive in Brussels and another part in Barcelona. Whatever the result, JxCat's spokesperson argued that Puigdemont should be able to return to Catalonia after being invested, as long as he has sufficient "guarantees" he won't go "directly to prison".
Artadi said that part of the negotiations between JxCat and ERC are focused on setting up the structure of the future government and preparing the logistics to make it viable that, if necessary, it can operate simultaneously from Belgium and Catalonia. She said that Puigdemont has to "lead, be executive and have full legitimacy", and that the role of the executive in Belgium has to be to mark the path "to where the country is going". On the other hand, she reiterated that the physical departments "are where they are", and that the workers, civil servants and high-ranking officials will continue working where they do normally.
Still on the logistics of having a two-headed government, Artadi, who was also JxCat's campaign director, said that the core of the executive will be in Catalonia and will take advantage of "fluid" communications with Brussels, primarily thanks to technology. She expressed confidence that they will be able to find a "fit" for a government part in Belgium, part in Catalonia. "Both the laws we have and the technology and human teams allow us to adapt, we'll do it this way," she said.
Similarly, Artadi admitted that they still have to find the way to ensure a normal pace of activity in the Parliament too. Asked about how asking the president and the government questions in the Parliament would work if he and other ministers were in Brussels, Artadi noted the "restrictions" imposed by Madrid. "It's more important to dignify the role of the ministers than look for it to be practical," she said.
The role of the ministers
Artadi was clear in assuring that the will of all the "legitimate" ministers will be "deeply" respected, independently of whether there are legal cases open against them or not. "Everybody has to be in the place that legitimately corresponds to them", she said, "nobody will be set aside". As such, she said that Clara Ponsatí, Lluís Puig, Meritxell Serret and Toni Comín, the ministers with Puigdemont in exile, will have to decide if they want to continue as ministers or not.
"We've spoken and speak regularly with Ponsatí and Puig, and they know there's nothing we'd like more than for them to continue as ministers", said Artadi. In other words, JxCat will prioritise any member of the "legitimate" government ahead of other names.
ERC and Puigdemont
JxCat repeats that, in private, as in public, ERC maintains that Puigdemont is their candidate too. "Until they say otherwise, we'll continue working within this framework," said Artadi. As for an agreement for the investiture, the spokesperson recalled that, if it was up to them, there would already by a new government.
Nonetheless, she accepts that there are "more determining factors" than in a "normal" legislature, for which reason she warns that the taking of decisions after the executive is formed will also be "slower" than normal. "If we have the misfortune that the vice-president remains in prison, it's clear that topics which have to be discussed will go at a different speed," she argued.
Artadi counts herself out
Finally, Artadi said that, for the moment, she is the party's spokesperson and "very happy" with her role. Nonetheless, she accepted that when the time comes, which "hasn't come" yet, it will be up for discussion whether she has a role or not in the new government, as Puigdemont wants.
Whatever happens, she made it clear that she completely counts herself out as being a candidate for president: "I'm not the alternative president to Puigdemont. There's a story which hasn't come from JxCat, nor from the president, nor from myself. It's created interest, but we're not feeding it, we've always denied it."