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MALAGA / MADRID.
Friday, 29 November 2024, 16:16
The Prime Minister has brushed off the latest waves of accusations of corruption and scandal impacting his leadership this week. A defiant Pedro Sánchez told MPs on Wednesday that his government was "clean" of corruption. He added that he had no intention of resigning and would carry on with the government's programme.
The PM's appearance in parliament had been eagerly anticipated for weeks as it was the first time he had been there since the flood disaster a month ago in Valencia - for which both regional and national governments have been criticised over their handling.
Sánchez said his government had "fulfilled its obligation" over Valencia. Criticising the oppostion-PP-controlled regional government of Valencia, he added, "Some people in very high positions have disengaged. It's very easy to see who they are, they are the ones spending their time mudslinging."
The leader of the opposition, the PP's Alberto Núnez Feijóo, hit back in parliament, saying, "We should be talking about how to prevent something like this from happening again, but there is zero self-criticism. Just blaming others - what a lack of humanity!"
However, it was the queue of scandals seemingly lining up to punch the government that dominated the headlines on the day.
Sánchez had been put more on the spot after last week's fresh revelations to investigators from Víctor de Aldama, the alleged main fixer in the Koldos case - supposed corruption that has stained senior government members over reported overpaying for facemasks during the Covid pandemic.
Among Aldama's many claims were that the third most senior person in the ruling Socialist party, Santos Cerdán, had received 15,000 euros in cash for favours; a senior member of the team of finance minister María José Montero had received 25,000 for favours; and that one minister, Ángel Víctor Torres, had asked for a payment of 50,000 which was rejected.
All those mentioned by Aldama strongly deny the claims and any association with him. But the new details were sufficiently impressive for Aldama to be released by the investigating judge from jail, where he was being held over another big alleged corruption case over VAT avoidance on fuel sales.
On top of the Koldos case, this week a police report into the leaking of personal tax information of the boyfriend of the opposition PP leader of the Madrid regional government, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, has seriously implicated the nation's chief prosecutor Álvaro García Ortiz. Díaz Ayuso's partner has been in trouble over nonpayment of tax.
Álvaro García Ortiz, a political appointee of Sánchez, has refused to step down despite being investigated for his part in the confidential information on that tax inquiry being released to the press.
This story also took another surprise turn this week when the PSOE Socialist-party leader in Madrid - and so leader of the opposition to Díaz Ayuso - fell out spectacularly with his national party bosses and resigned. In statements during the week, the top Madrid PSOE member, Juan Lobato, previously seen as a party high-flyer, implied he had been the one asked to reveal Díaz Ayuso's partner's tax dispute and was been pushed out for going against Sánchez and the party leadership's wishes.
Sánchez's week also got worse when it was announced his brother, who is a classical musician, was under formal investigation over a possible fraudulent creation of a job for him in the Badajoz provincial authority, among other irregularities.
Sánchez's wife, Begoña Gómez, continues under formal investigation over possible irregularities over her leadership of a university masters programme and malpractice, which she denies.
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