The spokesperson for IU in Congress and Sumar deputy, Enrique Santiago, reiterated this Saturday that "evidently never" will they be part of an Executive in which "cases of corruption" have occurred and these have been "allowed." "We have always drawn red lines," he stressed.
In an interview on the 'Parlamento' program on 'RNE', reported by Europa Press, Santiago spoke out when asked if Sumar feels comfortable with the closing of ranks with the Government that parliamentary partners have staged in recent days after the indictment of former socialist president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero became known.
The IU leader maintains that "the entire left" remains "prudently" attentive to how that indictment evolves and agrees that it is essential to let judges act to be able to know precisely "what there is."
"Very vigilant" against possible irregular conduct
In this context, he stressed that Sumar's red lines mean that they will "never" join a Government "in which cases of corruption have occurred and have been allowed," something that, he emphasized, affects both the forces that are part of the Council of Ministers today and those that were in the previous cabinet.
Enrique Santiago believes that "everyone" must be "very vigilant" and "very strict" not only when it comes to preventing corrupt practices, but also in defending "an ethical attitude" in political activity.
He also warned that there is "a diffuse red line" between influence peddling and the advisory and consulting work carried out by many former government presidents, an issue that, in his opinion, requires an analysis by the courts of justice. In any case, he defended that these are not behaviors that Sumar finds "neither politically correct nor, of course, ethical."
Rescue of Plus Ultra and the role of the Council of Ministers
Asked if Sumar would consider leaving the Executive if complicity of the Council of Ministers in the rescue of the Plus Ultra airline were demonstrated, the deputy stated he was "sure" that "that is not going to happen." "What there has been is an agreement by the Council of Ministers to rescue six airlines," he specified, highlighting that said operation was carried out "correctly."
Strict regulation of former presidents and lobbies
"There is no underlying problem with the suitability of the rescues nor with the misuse of rescue money, but rather whether there have been interventions that could have somehow influenced certain decisions," he clarified.
In relation to whether he considers that there is a specific intention to go against Zapatero, given that other former presidents have also carried out advisory tasks, Santiago has pointed out that in this case "there is no doubt" that Zapatero "has looked for trouble by trying to participate in the solution of Venezuela's problems."
For this reason, Sumar insists on the need to "strictly" regulate the activities of former presidents to avoid situations that could be presented as possible cases of corruption and to reactivate the Lobby Law in Congress.