Last October 29, the day of the fateful DANA which caused 220 deaths in Valencia alone, the president of the Valencian government, Carlos Mazón, maintained his agenda as if nothing had happened, despite the red warning level of the ‘State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) from 7:36 a.m., another from the Hydrographic Confederation of Júcar (CHJ) due to the risk of overflowing the Poyo ravine By July 12, many roads were already cut due to flooding.
Mazón also kept on his agenda a meal at the Ventorro restaurant, which the presidency initially described as personal and, later, he rectified and assured that he was professional with the Valencian journalist Maribel Vilaplana. This is undoubtedly the most controversial aspect of the president’s entire management of DANA.
Neither Vilaplana nor anyone from his direct environment had made any statements until now about the meal with Mazón, but given the number of rumors that have been circulating these days, a source authorized by the journalist has provided several clarifications to the questions from elDiario.es after announcing El País and El Confidencial made statements to the same effect. According to this source who speaks on behalf of Vilaplana, throughout the meal there was no mention of DANA and Mazón expressed no concern about the storm. The president did answer a few calls, but he doesn’t know how to specify the subject or how many there were. “I was not aware of what was happening,” emphasize the journalists through the spokesperson. The same source confirms that there was media coverage in the cabin.
Journalist Maribel Vilaplana explains through her spokesperson that Mazón offered her the leadership of À Punt, of course, “by presenting himself for the selection process.” In this sense, the journalist told him that she did not want this position because “it was the PP who fired her and closed Channel 9”. “I don’t want to be linked to any political party, I am a professional and I work with institutions of all colors,” she added. In this sense, according to the same source, the journalist suggested that Mazón “speaks more in Valencian”.
Concerning the agape, the journalist’s spokesperson explained that they had a “frugal meal with starters to share”. “We only drank one bottle of wine between the two of us and there were no digestives,” he explains. According to the same source, it was Mazón who called her to meet her and met her at the restaurant.
