Ignacio Garriga Income
Information has been revealed about the alleged extraordinary income from the funds of the Vox Parliament that Ignacio Garriga, leader of the ultras in Catalonia, would have collected. According to the receipts in the form of an invoice, Garriga justified the bonus that he has collected at the expense of the parliamentary group as ‘payment for office and attention services at the headquarters’.
An internal investigation by the Parliament’s Auditor of Accounts indicates that Garriga accumulated a total of 39,361 euros of irregular expenses in various ways in 2 years. Vox spokespersons have avoided giving explanations about what the concept ‘dispatch services’ refers to, but they have detailed that the Accounts Auditor only requested details of Garriga’s economic activity and declaration of assets.
Invoices and Expenses
The digital has had access to the invoices from May, June and July 2021, which are 1,538.46 euros gross each, in which the vice president of Vox withheld 35% of personal income tax, 538.46 euros in each receipt . The origin of this investigation lies in the complaint that a wayward deputy from the Santiago Abascal party presented two months ago to the Anti-Fraud Office against Garriga, ensuring that she billed personal expenses at the expense of the parliamentary group.
The report details two different types of expenses: those that Garriga justified as personal expenses with the parliamentary group card, and the invoices that he issued each month. Among the first group are expenses such as dry cleaning, leisure, hairdressing, Glovo services, worth 603.35 euros, and even the AMPA for Garriga’s children’s school. Regarding the invoices, the report indicates that in 2021 he received a total of 12,307.68 euros.
Clarifications and Proposals
The report indicates that the Board can ask the Vox group for clarifications related to the type of professional activity that the deputy has carried out and for which he would have received 38,496.59 euros. In addition, it proposes improving expenditure control mechanisms, suggesting a change in the rule to exercise broader control over the amount that parliamentary groups receive, which come from a public subsidy.
At no time is it assessed whether the act is a crime, nor is it proposed that the Board ask Garriga to return the money. However, it is suggested to modify the current regulations to expand the scope of financial control.
