In its first press conference at the Valencia City Council since obtaining municipal representation five years ago, Vox wanted to make it clear that its support for the mayor of Valencia, María José Catalá (PP), is not a blank check. The spokesperson for the far-right party, Juanma Badenas, has indicated that the fact that its councilors have exclusive dedication was a “unilateral” decision by the mayor without Vox asking for it. Catalá governs in a minority with 13 of the 31 councilors of the consistory.
Despite closing multiple government agreements in municipalities such as Elx and Torrent and co-governing the Generalitat, Vox has been left out of the municipal government of the capital and has no intention of making it easy for the PP. Along these lines, his spokesperson pointed out this Monday that his training will not support the approval of a new agreement with Valencia CF for the construction of the Nou Mestalla, a project that has been stalled for years.
Badenas has reminded Catalá that he does not have enough votes to carry out this agreement: “No renewal, the mayor must realize that 13 (council members) are not 17 and that if she wants some type of agreement or renewal she must agree with Compromís or the PSOE but not with Vox.”
And as he stressed during his appearance before the media, for Santiago Abascal’s party, the club’s maximum shareholder, Peter Lim, who is repudiated by most of the Valencian fans, is an “enemy of Vox.” “What is bad for Valencia is bad for the city of Valencia and what is bad for the city of Valencia is bad for Vox. Mr. Lim is an enemy of Vox.”
For this reason, Badenas has insisted that his formation “will always vote against any agreement with Peter Lim because he has breached all the agreements with the city of Valencia.” And he added: “Vox will not support Lim continuing to lead the VCF and if María José Catalá wants to support Lim and Meriton, he will have to have the support of Compromís or the PSOE.” For Badenas, the mayoress continues to maintain the same ambiguous position that Sandra Gomez or Joan Ribó had with the club’s president.
A situation that leaves the mayor in the hands of the opposition if she wants to reach some type of agreement with the owner of Valencia CF. It will be necessary to see if this forceful position is also produced in other negotiations and complicate the governability of the new government team that emerged from the polls on 28-M.
