Former Health Minister Toni Comín and Culture Minister Lluís Puig will return to Catalonia before Carles Puigdemont, who has decided to delay his return until after the general elections. Both avoid waiting for the former president and prioritise their personal interests.
The former ministers Toni Comín and Lluís Puig have decided not to wait any longer for Carles Puigdemont and return to Catalonia on their own. The decision comes after the former president announced that he is delaying his return until after the general elections, according to El Confidencial. With the amnesty underway, Junts considers the phase of repression to be over, but the separate returns will present an image of amnesty in dribs and drabs.
The staggered return contradicts the narrative that Junts had built over the years around the officials who remained abroad. They referred to it as exile, but now that exile is dissolving into individual returns that diminish political strength. The three leaders have also been distanced from each other after nine years away.
Toni Comín was removed from the Consell de la República, accused of controversial practices. He now claims that there is some urgency in collecting his MEP mandate in Madrid. He was elected to the European Parliament in 2024, but did not collect it for fear of being arrested. He has also not mentioned that he will have to swear the Spanish Constitution.
"There is some urgency"
The case of Lluís Puig is even more striking. In an interview on RAC-1, the Godó Group's station, he stated that he had already set foot in Ripollès, Empordà, and Garrotxa. With that confession, he downplayed the significance of his return and made it clear that he had already returned several times, which dismantles the supposed exile.
Lluís Puig is expected to appear in the Parlament on October 20, coinciding with the plenary session of the Catalan Chamber. He has a delegated vote, like Puigdemont, but once the Supreme Court archives his case, he will no longer be able to justify his absence. Therefore, he is expected to attend then to save his vote, although no key votes are scheduled, and to maintain the salary he receives from the Parlament.
The two adventure companions avoid submitting to Puigdemont's personalistic dictates, who has prioritised extending his status as legitimate president. Being three active politicians, the decision to return separately has political repercussions.
While the leadership of Junts has closed ranks with their leader, the grassroots have received with astonishment Puigdemont's decision to wait for the general elections. The former president aims to evade responsibility for a likely electoral debacle, as predicted by the El Confidencial poll, which suggests they will lose three seats. They also did not expect him to return after nine more years as legitimate president than as the leader of a party, although he himself had disconnected from that role.
Among the membership, there was hope that Puigdemont, with his return, would help improve the poor polling outlook. This will not be the case. The return of Comín and Puig, each on their own, makes it clear that the amnesty no longer depends on the powers of the State, but on the personal decision of the amnisted themselves. For the people of Catalonia, the return of the former ministers means the reactivation of their seats and public salaries, while the question remains when and how Puigdemont will do so.
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