The PP demands the resignation of the former Minister of Transport as a member of the PSOE
The judge of the National Court, Ismael Moreno, who is investigating the alleged case of collecting illegal commissions in the purchase of masks during the pandemic, has released the alleged head of the plot, Koldo García, who was then the right-hand man of the then Minister of Transport, José Luis Ábalos, after taking his statement. García’s brother, Joseba, the president of Zamora, Víctor de Aldama, and Basque businessman Íñigo Rotaetxe have also been released. The Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office has not requested prison terms against any of them.
The police operation and the arrests
The police operation, which investigates the collection of commissions in different contracts for the purchase of masks by the Ministries of Transport and the Interior, and the autonomous governments of the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands for a value of more than 50 million, was settled yesterday with twenty arrests in Alicante, Murcia and Alicante and 26 searches which, in some cases, have lasted until four in the morning. Also yesterday, the Civil Guard interrogated officials from the Ministry of the Interior such as the Secretary of State for Security and Fernando Grande-Marlaska’s number two, Rafael Pérez, and the head of the Coordination and Studies cabinet, José Antonio Rodríguez.
Political reactions
Meanwhile, the political scandal continues to grow at the hands of the PP, which is the one who made the allegations against these and other contracts of the State government to buy masks after the case of the brother of the president of the Community of Madrid, Tomás Ayuso. This case, which the justice ended up filing, is also the one that caused the defenestration of the previous president of the PP, Pablo Casado, who publicly denounced him causing a large-scale crisis in the party. The general secretary of the PP, Cuca Gamarra, has this morning asked for the resignation of José Luis Ábalos as deputy of the PSOE. For its part, the Balearic PP has demanded explanations from the then president of the Islands, Francina Armengol.
Situation of Ábalos
Ábalos, who yesterday was surprised and “perplexed” by the information, today refused to make statements, but within the PSOE there is unrest and some sources point out that his situation is unsustainable. However, the parliamentary group maintains that he will not resign as long as there are no indications against him. The investigation remains open and more arrests are not ruled out in the coming hours.