Alex Trelinski
THOUSANDS of people protested in Valencia City on Saturday in the latest demonstration calling for regional president Carlos Mazon’s resignation over his handling of the October 29 flood disaster.
The national government’s delegate’s office in the city put demonstrator numbers at around 30,000 but the Policia Local estimate was much lower at 16,000.
The fifth-such protest since November saw participants holding photos of deceased family members who chanted that Mazon should resign as they marched behind a banner stating that ‘our relatives died due to your incompetence’.
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Signs emblazoned with slogans including ‘Mazon in prison’, ‘murderers’ and ‘we don’t forgive, we don’t forget’ were carried alongside a large cardboard figure of Mazon with blood on his hands.
Mazon attracted fresh anger last week by changing his account of his whereabouts on October 29, when heavy rain triggered the floods.
Ernesto Martínez, brother and uncle of two of the 224 people died said: “Mazon should not spend minute in his job after the floods left families broken with pain.”
The PSOE Socialists have urged the leader of the Partido Popular, Alberto Nuñez Feijoo, to sack Mazon.
Socialist leader in the regional parliament and Spain’s Science Minister, Diana Morant, said that Feijoo ‘knows that Mazon is toxic’ and should sack him to end ‘the unbearable situation’.
Mazon survived a parliamentary no-confidence last week.
He has consistently rebuffed calls to quit and vowed to lead recovery work through to the 2027 regional elections.
Mazon refused to comment on the demonstration on Monday when quizzed by reporters on his arrival in Alicante to attend an event organised by the city’s chamber of commerce.
