Spain's main opposition Popular Party (PP) on Thursday demanded that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declare a national emergency over a massive surge in migrant arrivals in Ceuta, accusing the central government of abandoning its responsibilities.
Ceuta President Juan Jesús Vivas reported that 1,500 people entered the autonomous enclave from Morocco in a single week, representing nearly two percent of the city's total population.
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Local reception centers have reached 1,600 percent of their capacity.
Popular Party Secretary General Miguel Tellado stated in a press conference in Genoa that the central government holds sole jurisdiction over national borders and immigration matters.
“It will not be for lack of warnings. We have been warning repeatedly.
What there has been is a dereliction of duties and it has a huge cost,” Tellado said.
Party officials noted that more irregular migrants currently remain outside the official reception network than inside it, highlighting that the reception infrastructure in Ceuta has completely collapsed.
“We have a Government that has neglected its own responsibilities and the control of Spain's borders,” Tellado added.
Tellado urged the administration to step aside if it refuses to handle the situation, contrasting federal border control with regional forestry duties.
“If it does not assume its functions, let it give way to another government,” he said.
Legislative and Emergency Proposals
Popular Party Sectoral Coordination Deputy Secretary and MEP Alma Ezcurra recalled that her party registered a legal reform on July 16 to address aquatic crossings directly at the border, aiming “to enable border rejection in entries by swimming.”
