The ERC crisis, due to its false flag attacks, has had an impact on the fight for the party leadership. The latest chapter was the revelation of messages in Marta Rovira’s internal conversations in which the general secretary considered, without yet knowing that the denigrating posters of the Maragall family came from her own formation, that the attack could serve to “uproot some votes”.
The interim leadership of ERC, led by Rovira’s close associates, suggested that the team of former president and re-election candidate Oriol Junqueras was behind the leaked messages. “Not everything is worth winning,” Republican spokeswoman Marta Vilalta lamented.
As reported by Catalunya Ràdio, last January, Rovira wrote in an internal chat several messages that indicate his knowledge of the party’s parallel structure to attack rivals without signing the actions, known as “campaign B.”
Far from ending in July, the return from vacation brought new aftershocks to the internal earthquake in the ERC due to the denigrating posters on Alzheimer’s disease and the Maragall family that came from their own ranks. Ernest Maragall left the party in protest at the internal management of the crisis, as several leaders had known for months that the posters were a false flag attack.
The party only opened files on the former leaders involved, including former government deputy minister Sergi Sabrià, after the ARA newspaper revealed the existence of the false flag attack and a parallel party structure dedicated to anonymously smearing rivals.
“How are we doing in campaign B?” Rovira wrote in an internal chat. The new chapter of the crisis occurs in a context of internal struggle for the leadership of the party that will be resolved on November 30 between the Junqueras list, which aspires to revalidate the position, and that of Rovira’s close associates, who still do not have a leader.
In a press conference, Vilalta criticized the use of Rovira’s messages “in the framework of a parliamentary process.” Without explicitly mentioning Junqueras, he highlighted the candidate: “We ask those who want to carry the projects to face the congress in the most responsible way possible.”
“The project is above everyone and not everything is worth winning,” explained Vilalta, who considered that the leak of the messages “is used more in the code of Congress than to clarify the facts.”
The spokesman regretted that the leaks to the media “harm the project.” “Trying to win at all costs and using all the arts to win a congress does not help,” he added.
“We reiterate once again our apologies on behalf of the ERC and we will do so as many times as necessary,” insisted Vilalta, who reiterated that the false flag attack “is shameful and reprehensible and cannot be tolerated.”
