Vivas accuses Moncloa of ignoring his warnings about the massive entry into Ceuta and asking him to stop calling for getting "very annoying"

The president of Ceuta, Juan Jesús Vivas, has accused Moncloa this Friday of downplaying his warnings about the growing migratory pressure during the days prior to the massive entry on July 30 and 31. According to him, from the Presidency they even asked him to stop calling because he was getting "very annoying".

Vivas explained that on July 27, three days before tens of thousands of people crossed from Morocco, he tried to speak directly with the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez. The call was diverted to the Moncloa Cabinet Office, from where he was given a message of reassurance.

"Nothing is happening, this is a summer storm, everything is under control. Morocco collaborates and, therefore, there is no problem here," he claimed they responded. Vivas assured that he kept insisting until he received the request to "not call anymore" and was told that all information was being managed by the Government Delegation in Ceuta.

Vivas asked to declare a national emergency

The president of Ceuta recalled that on that same July 27, he demanded during a meeting at the Government Delegation the activation of a national emergency, a single command, and the reinforcement of the State Security Forces and Corps. His proposal could be channeled, he argued, through Civil Protection legislation or the National Security Law.

"When I spoke of a national emergency at that meeting, they always gave me a bad look," he said. Vivas believes that his interlocutors acted as if the situation "was not that serious", despite the increase in entries by swimming and the calls circulating on social media.

He also conveyed his requests to the Secretary of State for Security, Aina Calvo. According to his version, the leader asked him for 24 hours to study the legal fit of the measure and later informed him that the necessary conditions were not met. "This was on Wednesday afternoon and on Thursday morning Ceuta was invaded," he declared.

The clash over CNI warnings reaches the Audiencia Nacional

Vivas's account adds pressure to the Government after declassified documents confirmed that the National Intelligence Center (CNI) informed the Government Delegation, the Civil Guard, and the Moroccan secret services on July 29 of the existence of calls to enter Ceuta "by fence and sea".

The Executive maintains that those communications did not constitute a formal alert and that no agency anticipated the dimension that the entry would reach. The controversy has worsened with the resignation of Gonzalo Sanz, Chief of Staff of the Government delegate, after assuring that he informed Miguel Ángel Pérez Triano of the message and the call received from the CNI. The delegate maintains that he never had knowledge of these communications.

Vivas has described this clash of versions as "every man for himself" and considers it "very unlikely" that the delegate was unaware of the information transferred to his Chief of Staff. He has also warned that responsibilities for the management of previous alerts cannot be limited to the Delegation if its warnings reached the Ministry of Interior and other central administration bodies.

The Autonomous City has appeared in the case opened by the National Court to clarify the massive entry. Vivas wants the investigation to reconstruct the entire chain of communications and decisions adopted before the crisis, while he estimates that some 13,000 migrant people still remain in Ceuta.