Enrique Santiago, parliamentary spokesperson for IU and deputy for Sumar in Congress, has accused the United States of having supplied information about former President of the Government José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, indicted last Tuesday by the National Court in the framework of the Plus Ultra case.
According to his explanation, the actions of the Donald Trump Administration would have the objective of "causing a political crisis in the Government of Spain" and "punishing those who may have worked to evade the illegal sanctions unilaterally imposed by the United States on Venezuela".
In an interview on "La hora de La 1" on TVE, reported by Europa Press, the IU leader pointed out that "it is not very normal for the United States to make recordings available" that they do not know "where they were obtained from" nor that they "care so much about Zapatero" but not "about the 'lobby' that other former presidents do".
For Santiago, Washington's strategy involves "turning what are attempts at political interference in the sovereignty of other States into judicial cases." Later, in statements in Congress, he insisted that "what we find surprising is that information from United States agencies is being used, supposedly with judicial reach."
He recalled that something similar happened when the Donald Trump administration tried to bring former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to justice in New York and, once there, the Prosecutor's Office acknowledged that the Cartel of the Suns, with which he was linked, did not actually exist. "And we have seen the same regarding the indictment of Raúl Castro, who, by the way, has no responsibility in Cuba right now, but is a retired person," he added.
In this context, he focused on the fact that Judge Calama's order includes data from a US security agency "that no one knows how it was obtained," without it being recorded whether it was by "judicial order," in which territory it was collected, or if "the chain of custody has been preserved." "In other words, zero credibility to the security institutions of the United States," he concluded.
No trace of government involvement in the Plus Ultra case
The Sumar deputy stressed that in the order by which former President Zapatero is indicted, "there is no mention anywhere" of "any alleged responsibility of the current Government."
In his opinion, "the ruling presents very clear indications in some assumptions" against the former socialist president, but regarding misappropriation or money laundering, he does not see "absolutely anything".
However, the IU leader has admitted that "there do seem to be political responsibilities or actions that are more than questionable" from an ethical point of view, as "public resources" may have been used which "cannot be reconciled with engaging in lucrative activities".
Along these lines, he has lamented that there are practices that "do not have to be illegal, but are politically devastating" and has railed against "the excessive desire for personal gain".
"It is not ethical, lawful, nor politically acceptable for there to be people who mix political and institutional responsibilities with personal gain. Obtaining profit for oneself or for a third party by using influence with the public administration of our country is a crime, and we ask that all of this be investigated to the end," he summarized to the media in Congress.
When questioned about the stance the minority partner of the Executive would adopt if the involvement of ministries or high-ranking officials were confirmed, he was blunt: "We are absolutely incompatible with maintaining a government involved in corruption problems. But, at the moment, that is not the case, not by a long shot."
Santiago says he is calm after reading the ruling and calls for more anti-corruption measures
"I, reading the ruling, have been left calm for now. Because the ruling is concrete in that regard. It makes references to high-ranking officials and dismisses the possibility that they have had any kind of role in these matters," he indicated, emphasizing that, if the investigation ends up revealing "responsibilities of the public administration, they would correspond to a government that no longer exists."
The parliamentary spokesperson for IU has reiterated the advisability of approving a package of anti-corruption reforms and recalled that Sumar already tried to promote it following the case of Santos Cerdán, but that it remains blocked "due to a lack of will from the PSOE."
Likewise, he has rejected the criticisms about corruption launched by PP and Vox, recalling that it was their votes, together with those of Junts, that sank the creation of the Anti-Corruption Agency promoted by Sumar. "They are not interested in having effective mechanisms against corruption," he concluded.