Friends, family and colleagues from the PP have begun to arrive at the Huelva funeral home early this Friday to say goodbye to the former minister and president of the CEOE Foundation, Fátima Báñez, who died in the train accident that occurred last Wednesday in the province of Toledo. The minister will be buried in the afternoon in her hometown, San Juan del Puerto.
In this way, the Huelva funeral home has been the place chosen for the former minister's wake, since the family wanted the farewell to be public so that all those who wish to do so can come to pay their respects. However, the funeral that will take place this Friday afternoon will be private.
Thus, since early in the morning, family, friends and, above all, colleagues from the Popular Party have begun to arrive, such as the former vice president of the Government Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, Báñez's partner in the Mariano Rajoy executive between 2011 and 2018, the also former minister Ana Pastor or the former mayor and former president of the PP-A, Teófila Martínez.
The former president of the PP-A Javier Arenas has also visited the Huelva funeral home; the deputy secretary of Autonomous and Local Coordination and Electoral Analysis of the PP, Elías Bendondo; the MEP and former councilor of the Junta Carmen Crespo.
The world of economics also wanted to say goodbye to the current president of the CEOE Foundation, since the president of the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), Antonio Garamendi, and the president of ATA and vice president of the CEOE, Lorenzo Amor, came to the wake.
In this regard, Garamendi expressed this Friday his "deep sadness, dismay and desolation" upon his arrival at the wake of the former minister and president of the CEOE Foundation, Fátima Báñez, who died in a train accident.
In statements to the media outside the wake, Garamendi expressed his condolences and solidarity to all the victims, those hospitalized and the survivors of this "horrible accident." He especially highlighted the case of Báñez, who he recalled was "one of the last rescued", and thanked the deployment of the "ecosystem of solidarity" made up of the neighbors, the Military Emergency Unit (UME), the Civil Guard, firefighters and health workers.
On the other hand, the president of the party in the province, Manuel Andrés González, has already approached the PP family in Huelva; Ángel Sánchez, one of his trusted men during his mandate; the mayor of Huelva, Pilar Miranda, along with several of her councilors; the president of the Provincial Council, David Toscano; the president of the Port of Huelva, Alberto Santana; and the delegate of the Board in Huelva, Berta Centeno, along with the rest of the delegates, among others.
In this sense, the delegate of the Board, in an audio sent to the media, has indicated that "to talk about Fátima Báñez is to talk about unwavering commitment to Huelva and absolutely tireless work." "A person with an impeccable professional career and a huge heart. Everything seemed little to him for our land."
"If you asked him for help, he didn't have time to be there and reach out to you. We are going to notice his absence very much. We are missing a key figure for all the people of Huelva, for the women of Huelva especially. For me, apart from a great friend, a role model and an example in life. I want to convey all my love and a huge and sincere hug to his entire family and to the loved ones of all the victims, of course, of this terrible tragedy," he concluded.
