Palma.The live television debate between the Balearic President Francisco Antich and the opposition Partido Popular's presidential candidate, Jose Ramon Bauza, appears to have been sealed and will be screened live this Sunday at 9.30 on the local IB3 Tv channel. However, fellow and opposing politicians are not happy and tried, but failed, to have the debate blocked on the grounds that they were not going to be given the same opportunity to address the public.
However, President Antich yesterday said that he considered it only sensible that he and Bauza hold a live debate on the grounds that it will be one of them who emerges as president from the elections.
But, even members of his PSOE-PSIB Balearic Socialist Party are still not satisfied. In order to appease the rest of the minor politicians, IB3 had suggested a giant live round table debate, but yesterday, the Socialist Mayor of Palma Aina Calvo, and the Socialist President of the Council of Majorca, Francina Armengol, said they would not accept the invitation to the debate.
Snubbed
It appears that they feel snubbed, because Calvo wants a live TV debate against her PP challenger Mateu Isern, while Armengol, wants to take to the studio to take on her PP opponent María Salom.
The more marginal far left parties are calling for boycotts of the debate but they have been organised in the interests of the electorate, not would-be politicians.
Initially, the idea was to have a live debate between all the party leaders but it was Bauza who said that he would only face Antich. Something the current President admitted yesterday he does not understand because politics is all about debating.