The Barcelona City Council has started issuing vulnerability reports for the extraordinary regularization process of migrants, a measure that has already caused long queues at several service points in the city. The situation has become especially visible at the OAC of Sant Miquel, where queues have formed that surrounded the building and some people have come to wait more than 16 hours.
The pressure has also shifted to the OAC of Monumental, where moments of tension have been experienced, and to the SAIER, which has also registered queues during the last hours. The start of the issuance of these reports has concentrated numerous applicants in a reduced time frame, with the horizon of June 30 as the deadline for this regularization process.
Appeal from the mayor given the pressure in the offices
The mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, has made a call for calm given the accumulation of people in municipal services. The mayor has remarked that there is still time until June 30 and has assured that the city council will evaluate if it is necessary to further expand and reinforce the services for these people.
Additionally, the City Council will enable four points without prior appointment for the delivery of information, the certificate of registration and the vulnerability report, with the intention of alleviating the burden currently borne by offices and specialized services.
Criticisms of the opposition for the municipal management
The situation has generated criticism from different municipal groups. Joan Rodríguez, from Junts, has denounced a "flagrant improvisation, short-sightedness and an evident lack of resources". In the same vein, Eva Baró, from ERC, has maintained that "the queues we see are the result of a flagrant lack of resources and very poor planning".
From the PP, Daniel Sirera has stated that "this is not normal, it is not managing well, chaos harms the most vulnerable people". For her part, Jess González, from BComú, has demanded "guarantee the rights of migrants" so that "regularization is not a bureaucratic labyrinth". Gonzalo de Oro, from Vox, has proposed that the City Council "put toilets for the people who are queuing".
Reinforcement of attention in full countdown
The opening of new walk-in points seeks to organize a demand that has skyrocketed in the first stages of this procedure. While waits continue in municipal facilities in Barcelona, the city council tries to redirect a situation that has strained in-person attention precisely in a particularly sensitive procedure for hundreds of people in the city.