Twilight of Monica Oltra

The political earthquake that ensued after the Generalitat spokesperson was impeached and the media interest in attending his first appearance with the label, which was already under investigation, forced additional room to accommodate mass media engagement on Friday. For almost an hour, no one asked him about the deals he had accepted at the early morning plenary meeting of the Botànic Executive, the Government he assumed had left the reputation mortgage behind. He was the hero. Just him and his judicial future. Predictable. Under the downpour, Oltra responded more or less reluctantly, depending on the approaches. At some moments, it was impossible for him to hide his boredom with the monotheme that haunted him. A little over a decade ago, he remained indifferent to recent questions, projecting an image that had nothing to do with the energetic Valencian who rocked the regional scene by opposing the PP during the worst years of corruption. On a personal level, and inevitably related to her political figure, wear and tear attests to the fall of Mónica Oltra, which was televised directly, settled into the position, and with no intention of resigning. Even if he finally sits on the bench.

A lawsuit was filed against the Ministry of Equality and Inclusive Policies regarding Oltra’s role for maximum liability when a custodial minor was sentenced to five years in prison and arrested after being sexually abused by her ex-husband. His appeal to the Supreme Court led to a split in his career, which was one of the reference policies in the regional board. Specifically, indications that TSJCV has pointed out that a plan could be devised to cover up the abuse case so as not to harm the abuser or his or her political career make the future trajectory of this 52-year-old lawyer questionable. The hands of the courts where he will go to testify on July 6th. He will follow the same path as many of his predecessors in government. The final result is for once only. In any case, the leader of Compromís is well aware of the ordeal entailed by this entire process known as the newsletter sentence. Because Oltra is not new to the business of politics. He’s been sitting on the Cortes for fifteen years, and he knows, or at least should, know what he’s up against and the consequences. Not just for him. Also for botany.

Oltra entered the Valencian Parliament in 2007 under the umbrella of the Compromís pel País Valencià formation, which is part of the EUPV where he is active. He had previously worked as a lawyer for these abbreviations. One of the most remembered events was in the 2003 Cortes election, when he was responsible for requesting a recount to check for errors in the vote count. As a result, the Socialists lost a seat to EU-L’Entesa. This was an overlooked point in his favour.

Born in Neuss (Germany), the daughter of Spanish immigrants, she joined the Valencian Country’s Communist Party at the age of 15 and was four legislators when she joined the Valencian Parliament, where she completed her first term. 2007, as spokesperson, as a result of the resounding conflict between the two factions of the left coalition of which he was a member. He was even expelled from the EUPV along with Mireia Molla, but re-emerged much stronger in the heat of a party with a new constitution made to measure. The initiative of Poble Valencià began to march with Oltra at its head. Already in that legislature, especially in May 2009, his image has spilled over into the state arena. His speech, his ability to confront the right with harsh language, was a hallmark already making headlines. But the visibility that gave her career a boost came from a stunning and somewhat irreverent staging. In any case, it’s unprecedented on the hemicycle.

Demand on sets

He eventually made his way to Parliament in a shirt that has become an icon for part of the Valencian left, a garment of Consel’s president Francisco Camps with the words “Wanted” over his face. Only alive”, which means “Wanted, only alive”. His courage caused him to be expelled from Cortes. It was the first time but not the last. And the phrase “We don’t have money, we have plenty of hot dogs” also happened to him. But by then, Oltra had already become a bet at television dinners, let alone Channel 9. His harsh interventions in the Cortes, his relentless fight against the then-omnipotent PP de Camps, the confusion in several legal cases, and his street activism skyrocketed his popularity. Those were years when it was common to see him at demonstrations and protests that emphasized his strategy of attrition against the right. Meanwhile, Compromis was building its regional organic structure, until May 2015, when arithmetic finally made it possible. Valencians, PSPV-PSOE and Podem sign Botànic’s first deal. The sum of the seats allowed him to dismiss the PP after twenty years of command and command. His transition from opposition to power marked a turning point in Consell’s career as none other than vice president. In this over-appointment by polls, 19 MPs were head of a coalition that garnered 13 additional seats to those obtained in the previous mandate. By that time, his popularity was still growing, and one of his orders that the accused should leave the establishments without slurs was increasingly applauded. She had become a kind of muse for a section of the left, so much so that Podemos with full swing and Pablo Iglesias at the helm demanded him as an example to follow. It’s the same as what Yolanda Díaz did a few months ago, but after recent events, we’ll see how that incipient idyll around the «Sumar» merger continues. One of many idylls, for he was with Íñigo Errejón the last time the Valencians joined the generals.

Led by Ximo Puig, who runs the Generalitat, the duo followed his lead, with pros and cons. Disputes between Oltra and Justice Minister Gabriela Bravo were and continued to air until their honeymoon ended in divorce. Puig’s decision to postpone the election until April 2019 to coincide with the general election has left a wound that sometimes festers even today. Oltra accused him of infidelity for not agreeing on a decision of this depth. But again, the ballot boxes were opened and after the counting of the votes, they were doomed to understand each other. Botànic II started with Unides Podem, this time integrated into the Government.

The second term of the left-wing coalition in Consell was more traumatic due to an epidemic. Stones have been added along the way to each year’s battles to balance the budget, a classic where the Ministry of Oltra has always outgrown the rest. Contradictions in the political formula of countering Covid led to fierce confrontations with Puig. But the worst was yet to come.

Her ex-husband’s five-year prison sentence for sexual abuse uncovered in December 2019 dragged on, like the epidemic, during his tenure as high-caliber ammunition for the opposition. It doesn’t matter if he makes statements in the Cortes, like the sweeping appearance on April 21, 2021, which he refers to when he doesn’t want to answer a question on the subject. It doesn’t matter whether he insists that this miserable question does not concern him or his ministry.

Everything changed with the opening of the judicial process, which insisted on calling it the prey of the far right. Seeing them coming, Vicen Marzà resigned from being in charge of Education and left the Government, a move Oltra learned at the last minute. In any case, the blame now leaves him at the most complicated moment of his career. And not because of complaints from José Luis Roberto, one of the leaders of Spain 2000, and Cristina Seguí, the founder of Vox in the Community; however, due to the prosecution’s writings and the order that hastened the downfall of TSJCV, even though he tried to act like this was something that wouldn’t go away with him.