Bad mood grows within Junts for Toni Comín's cases

BrusselsThe resolution of the European Parliament that backs the former assistant of Toni Comín who reported him for psychological and sexual harassment, and the way Junts is handling this and another internal complaint for alleged physical assault have intensified internal discontent with the MEP. Several Junts sources tell ARA that the bad mood, which became evident following the former minister's controversial economic management at the Council of the Republic, has been increasing in recent days, and some voices, although there is no formal request, advocate for the leadership to take measures against Comín, such as demanding he resign his seat. Comín, regarding his future as an MEP, believes it would be "a fraud to democracy" for him to have to resign due to "a false accusation." "I won the primaries to be the head of the list with 77% of the votes and almost 500,000 people voted for the list I led," the former minister claims in this newspaper.

The cases are not being litigated, and Comín retains the presumption of innocence, which the leadership has used as an excuse not to act against him. Numerous party sources, however, emphasize that it is no longer just about accusations and complaints, but also about an investigation and conclusions from the European Parliament itself, which lends credibility to the accuser, encouraging them to pursue legal action by offering to cover all associated costs. For this reason, it has internally caused surprise that Junts's guarantees commission has halted the investigation since February and, in fact, has also halted the investigation into a second complaint.

However, the Junts MEP downplays the European Parliament's resolution in a conversation with ARA. Comín describes it as "very strange" that the community chamber's text states, on the one hand, that it "does not have jurisdiction" to make any decision or sanction him because he currently does not have the seat and, at the same time, "considers itself competent" to conduct a "preliminary" investigation in which he claims he could not defend himself. In any case, the European Parliament concludes that it has "sufficient evidence" to take Comín to court.

In the case of the second complaint filed against Comín within Junts – this one has not gone through the European Parliament – it has been discussed internally within the party for some time. We have to go back to the night of the Catalan elections on May 12, 2024. Following orders, an advisor for Junts blocked the former minister's path when he tried to enter Carles Puigdemont's office. The gesture angered Comín, who pushed her aside after arguing with her. There were several eyewitnesses, and the events spread like wildfire among Junts cadres.

It is not the first time that Comín has been in trouble within Junts. The most controversial case so far had been that of management at the Council of the Republic, after an audit detected "irregular expenses" by the MEP. The provisional board of the Council reported "pressures" of a "verbal and written" nature by Comín to change the audit report which concluded that the expenses of his trip to Northern Catalonia were "unjustified". Comín also announced that he would file a lawsuit against Josep Miquel Arenas (Valtònyc), after the rapper accused him of having transferred money from the Council of the Republic to his bank account; and the former IT manager of the organization, Ferran Revilla, reported that he received "pressures" from the former minister to let him "divert donations". In the same vein, the MEP has threatened to take legal action against the former advisor who reported him to the European Parliament for physical and sexual harassment for defamation, also after the Eurochamber ruled in favor of the former Junts worker.

After the controversy at the Council, the leadership of Junts did not support Comín as a candidate to preside over the entity. In fact, Toni Castellà, a member of Junts' executive, tweeted that both he and the former president of the Generalitat had asked him not to run. The former minister Puig and, among other prominent figures from Junts' circle and the exile, turned their backs on him and supported other candidacies.