The Minister of Industry and Commerce of the Principality of Asturias, Belarmina Díaz, announced on Tuesday her resignation of the position so as not to “be a hindrance” on March 31 that cost five lives and left four serious injuries. In his speech at the Plenary Session of the General Meeting of the Principality about misfortune in the mine, he has accused the PP and Vox of “politically use” what happened and of not having an interest in clarifying the causes that caused the death of the miners. “You don’t care why Grisú’s explosion of Blue Solving occurred, you don’t care. You are only interested in exercising a permanent and personal attack against me, that neither I nor my family deserves,” he added.
The Popular Party, Forum and Vox, but also for IU-Íiciativa by Asturies, partner of the Socialists in the Regional Government, and the deputy of the Mixed Group, Covadonga Tomé (before in Podemos) had criticized the lack of transparency of the Ministry and had questioned the management carried out by Díaz. The cessation or resignation requests of the head of Industry were repeating from the opposition groups since last week, after
“Thank you, president, for having trusted me, but, as you know, I accepted the position of counselor to work for and for Asturias. From the accident my only objective was investigation, truth and justice, and I am clear that in no case will I be an obstacle to the investigation, or to know the truth, or to do justice,” he told the president of the Principality, Adrián Barbón, present in the session.
The resignation of the socialist counselor occurs at a time when there is already a parliamentary majority made up of the PP, Vox and the two deputies of the mixed group to activate a special investigation commission with which to resolve political responsibilities for the accident, regardless of the penalties that arise from the investigation carried out by the Court of Cangas del Narcea. For the regional PSOE, a parliamentary investigation commission on the accident “would not contribute anything”, since there are three other lines of investigation, said the socialist deputy René Suárez, who has accused the opposition of making a “partisan use” of misfortune.
Belarmina Díaz had been in office for about two months, after the position of Nieves Roqueñí, who currently presides over the port of Gijón. Díaz is Mines Engineer from the University of Oviedo, a doctor in Mines Engineering from that university and a master’s degree in environmental impact assessment, by the Institute of Ecological Research of Malaga.
From June 2017 to February 2025 she was the General Director of Energy and Mining of the Principality of Asturias; President of the Fundoma (Teaching Foundation of Asturian Miners) and the Regional Mining Security Commission. Previously, she worked for three years in the private company and 19 as a professor at the University of Oviedo. He has directed or participated in more than 75 research projects, has publications in scientific journals.
