Spanish Government declares the state of alarm for the coronavirus

USPA NEWS - The President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, announced this Friday, in an institutional statement, that the Council of Ministers will meet on Saturday with extraordinary character to agree on the state of alarm throughout Spain for a maximum of fifteen days, in accordance with the established in article 116.2 of the Constitution. Sánchez affirmed that the State will thus have exceptional instruments to act with agility and forcefulness and better protect the health of the citizens, which he asked to strictly comply with the experts' instructions and to collaborate together to beat the virus.

At the meeting scheduled for this Saturday, the extraordinary Council of Ministers “will adopt a series of exceptional decisions under the declaration of the state of alarm to be enacted. These decisions will be aimed at mobilizing all the resources of the State as a whole to better protect the health of all citizens. Economic resources, health resources, both public and private, both civilian and military, for the protection of all citizens, particularly those who are most vulnerable to the virus due to their age or other prior procedures. And also to respond to the social and economic emergency with maximum agility and forcefulness," explained the Spanish Prime Minister.

Sánchez added that “we want the maximum coordination of resources, efficient and guaranteed by the set of public administrations, and their best functioning. The Government of Spain," he said,"is going to protect all citizens and is going to guarantee adequate living conditions to stop the pandemic with the least possible damage."

“We are only in a first phase of the fight against the virus that is being waged by all the countries of the world and, in particular, our continent, Europe. Very hard weeks await us, as I said at the beginning of the week. We said that difficult days would come and we took measures to meet that difficulty, and it cannot be ruled out that in the next week we will unfortunately reach the more than 10,000 affected,“ predicted the Prime Minister.

The declaration of the state of alarm allows the maximum mobilization of material resources to combat the virus. But also, Pedro Sánchez stressed, “you are going to allow me to have a fundamental resource that is beyond any law or decree and to which I would like to appeal directly to my compatriots. Victory depends on each of us, in our home, in our family, at work or in our neighborhood. Heroism also consists of washing hands, staying at home and protecting oneself to protect the whole of the citizens. It will take weeks, it will be very hard and difficult, but we are going to stop the virus. That is sure. With unity, responsibility and social discipline,“ he concluded.

Regional elections postponed

The declaration of the state of alarm has another indirect consequence: the postponement of the regional elections in Galicia and the Basque Country, initially planned for next April 5. Movement restrictions and the prohibition of mass meetings hinder the development of the electoral campaign and the holding of elections, which will be called at a later date.

Spanish politics is another victim of the COVID-19. The Minister for Equality, Irene Montero; the Minister of Consumption, Alberto Garzón, and the Minister of Territorial Policy and Public Function, Carolina Darias, tested positive for the coronavirus, while the second vice president, Pablo Iglesias - partner of the Minister for Equality -, remains in quarantine to rule out its possible infection. The Royal Family has also undergone tests to detect the virus and all its members have tested negative, after Queen Letizia met a few days ago with the Minister for Equality in a public act and exchanged kisses with her.

All political parties have reported that some of its most prominent members are carriers of the virus. For this reason, the Spanish Parliament has suspended its activities until April 13 and all regional parliaments have adopted the same position. It is not ruled out that this Saturday the Government forces the Spaniards to seclude themselves in their homes and decrees the compulsory closure of bars, restaurants and leisure spaces throughout Spain.