On the edge of this, Wednesday will be the first day of the strike within the public sector called by the unions ELA, LAB, CCOO, Steilas, Satse, and Esk. The Lehendakari, in an article published by this media outlet on its pages this Monday, criticized the “populist” vision of those who will send broad messages so that all public services and more people will be civil servants, as if the public money collected from citizens is unlimited. to support the whole structure, and also need not be supported for other needs, such as employment in private companies, self-employment, or cooperatives.
“You cannot use all the public money and savings of the citizens just to pay the salaries of the officials. That, at least, is not our model. We believe that our resources are limited, and taking that into account, we strive to improve our public services and the conditions of workers every day. Of course, it is explained that to move forward as a society, it is important to save, invest, and protect the business world,” he defended, adding that companies, cooperatives, or the self-employed are important for the public “wealth” to continue to grow in the savings of citizens. Companies create wealth, he said, and that is why he will continue to defend public-private collaboration. The amount of tax collection depends on the private company (from corporate tax in addition to the personal income tax of working people), which in turn feeds the public service. In addition, Urkullu criticized the fact that these talks threaten the sustainability of the economy of Euskadi.
Iñigo Urkullu faces the first day of the public sector strike this week, which will be followed on December 19 by the second day of protest. This tension is an important source of destruction because it can once again spread the discourse that public services, and especially Osakidetza, will no longer shine as they used to. The Basque elections will take place in the first half of next year, and a possible repeat general election is on the horizon.
“Strategy of Populism”
In this context, in the article titled The Basque Country: Reality vs. Populism (Euskadi: Reality vs. Populism), Urkullu tried to break these criticisms with data, confirmed the investments of his government, and also warned that any service cannot be a public service because it puts the well-being and sustainability of the economy in the country in danger.
“I never hide the problems,” said Lehendakari, but he criticized the attitude of those who spread the truth “based on interested views.” “The strategy of populism is known all over the world. They say what a part of society wants to hear every time there is a speaker. In our case, they say the following: that public services are declining, that the working conditions in the public sector are deteriorating, that the administration is an infinite bag of money, or that the privatization of public services is constant, etc. Populisms do not offer any objective data or cite sources”, Lansa.
“People should not be used to defend one’s own interests. It is not legitimate to deceive people.”
Uru considers this “irresponsible” attitude “very dangerous.” “It can shake our well-being. People should not be used to protect their own interests. It is not legitimate to deceive people,” he warned. Lehendakari ified his position that, on the one hand, “institutions do not have unlimited resources,” but they try to manage the savings of all citizens most efficiently. “In Euskadi, we have a model that, in all its chiaroscuros, shows its effectiveness. Above all, in difficult times,” he said.
He argued that “all services will not be announced to the public because they are unbearable in our economy.” “It’s easy to say this service must be made public; these people should be civil servants. Easy to say, but impossible to do. The question is: How will our economy be managed in a few years?”, he asked, to conclude that populism does not care about these consequences because it only plays in the short term.
Social investment and industry
Compared to the “catastrophic” image that has been spread without data, it compares the investment growth figures, although it makes it clear that it is not satisfied and needs to be “repaired.” For example, it emphasizes that Euskadi’s GDP grew by 30% in ten years, the unemployment rate was 16.6%, and now it has decreased to 7.4%, that the expenditure on health per person amounts to 2,700 euros and is now 3,500 euros, and that the Basque community invests the most in education with 1,426 euros per student, compared to the state average of 1,029. Industry and advanced services make up 40.8% of GDP.
