"We must change the instruments that we have," the 130th president of the Catalan Generalitat announced. "We have been neglected by the government and, therefore, we need our own instruments."
Puigdemont’s predecessor Artur Mas attended the inauguration ceremony that was broadcast live by the local 24 Horas television channel.
The former mayor of the Catalan city Girona was voted in as the leader of the affluent autonomous province on Sunday after Mas withdrew his nomination for the regional presidency.
Puigdemont has pledged to continue pushing for Catalonia’s independence and rolled out a roadmap for secession within 18 months, despite repeated warnings from Madrid that the central government would go all-out against the region in a legal battle.
