The island's top representative stated that the actions of the central Executive were “characteristic of autocracies,” accusing it of acting outside Canarian institutions, withholding information, and making irresponsible decisions. She described the management as a situation “with many shadows.”
Despite the Spanish Government receiving praise from the World Health Organization and the European Union for the international deployment, the island president considered the vessel's continued presence in Tenerife to be a “political decision not supported by any document.” She suggested that the disembarkation of all affected passengers could have been completed in a single day.
“"They assured us that there were no symptoms, that all passengers were asymptomatic. Today, we already know that suspicious cases are appearing in France and the United States... and new positives will continue to emerge. They also told us that there was no other alternative, and now we know that PCR tests were not even performed."
The Government Delegation in the Canary Islands clarified that generalized PCR tests were not carried out on the ship due to a lack of technical capacity and epidemiological reasons, but they were performed on high-risk contacts and symptomatic individuals, who were evacuated. The island president, however, insisted that PCR tests could have been conducted in Cape Verde for better case distinction upon arrival in the Canary Islands.
The leader of the Cabildo also refused to accept “lessons in solidarity” from the Spanish Government, arguing that the Canary Islands have extensive experience in managing migration crises. She expressed her “enormous concern” about what happened in the last 48 hours on the island, reiterating the perception of a “unilateral” and “undialogued” action by the central Government.
In response to these statements, the general secretary of the PSOE of Tenerife accused the president of the Cabildo and her party of “feeding fear, political confrontation, and social alarm” instead of conveying confidence and institutional serenity. She described the president's stance as “very serious and irresponsible,” especially given the official communication from the WHO formally requesting the collaboration of Spain and the Canary Islands to manage the operation under international health protocols.
