Summons to Pedro Sánchez for Tuesday
The judge in charge of the investigation related to Begoña Gómez has summoned Pedro Sánchez to testify as a witness next Tuesday, July 30 at 11 in the morning. According to the statements of Juan Carlos Peinado, he will go to the Moncloa Palace to make the statement, avoiding the president’s transfer to the Investigative Court Number 41 in Madrid. This action follows the request presented by the Vox party, which last Friday made public its desire for the leader of the Spanish Government to appear following his wife’s decision to exercise her right not to testify in her own court case for alleged corruption crimes. and influence peddling related to her business activity since her husband took office.
Changes in the procedural situation of other witnesses
Furthermore, Juan Carlos Peinado has decided to reformulate the procedural position of another VIP related to this matter. Joaquín Goyache Goñi, rector of the Complutense University of Madrid, is now listed as a defendant in this investigation. His appointment to testify is scheduled for Monday, July 29 at 9:45 in the morning. This decision is similar to the one taken last Friday in relation to Juan Carlos Barrabés, who was accused after agreeing to have held meetings with Begoña Gómez and Pedro Sánchez at the headquarters of the Spanish Government during his turn as a witness. Barrabés is also scheduled to appear on July 29, but under the condition of being investigated.
VOX’S DEMAND THAT SÁNCHEZ SHOULD STATE
On Friday of last week, immediately after Begoña Gómez left the Investigative Court Number 41 without offering a statement, Vox announced that it would demand the appearance of Pedro Sánchez. This far-right party argued that the president should be questioned due to his presence in some of the meetings his spouse held with businessmen. Jorge Buxadé stressed: ‘If his wife chooses the right not to testify and does not provide explanations, then Sánchez will have to come and give his version of the discussions they had at the meetings in Moncloa.’ Santiago Abascal, in a subsequent comment on his
Government reaction to the summons
A few hours later, Félix Bolaños, in his role as Minister of Justice and Presidency, disqualified as absurd and ‘ridiculous from a legal point of view’ Vox’s request for the Spanish president to appear. During his speech in the Senate, Bolaños emphasized that this situation represents more of a political persecution against a progressive government that works for the advancement of the country and for citizen rights. Likewise, he came out in defense of Begoña Gómez, describing the situation as ‘cruel, unfair, inhuman and terrifying’, emphasizing that it has no limits.
A milestone: the second president to declare
Next Tuesday, Pedro Sánchez will become the second president of the Spanish Government to appear as a witness in a judicial process. The first to do so was Mariano Rajoy, who at the time had to physically travel to the National Court in San Fernando de Henares for the trial of the Gürtel case. The curious thing about his statement was that he did not sit testifying as a conventional witness, but rather he was placed in a prominent place on the stand, where the court is usually located. In his case, he did not appear as a representative, but in his capacity as former secretary general of the Popular Party.
Reaction of the Popular Party
The Popular Party’s first reaction to the news was from its spokesperson, Borja Sémper. On the same day, the party meets at the National Board of Directors in Madrid, not in its usual headquarters at Génova 13, but in a hotel near the Santiago Bernabéu stadium. Upon his arrival, Sémper expressed that ‘it is truly regrettable’ to learn that the President of the Government must testify in a case of possible corruption. ‘We stand in solidarity with the citizens who feel embarrassed by this scandal that seems to have no end,’ he told the media, wishing that ‘the rule of law works and acts.’ ‘This is what normality represents; No one is above the law, neither the President of the Government nor his close circle,’ he concluded.