The "hamster wheel" of the Pujol trial: what is happening in the sessions of the National Court?

MadridAfter eight sessions in San Fernando de Henares, 25 kilometers from Madrid, the trial of the Pujol family resumed this Monday at the National Court headquarters on Génova Street. And it was like going back to school: the defense lawyers had to change buildings to get their robes, the state attorneys didn't know which machine to use. vending They could use it, and the security guard at the entrance had to ask Jordi Pujol Ferrusola if he needed a robe. "We're going around in circles like a hamster," one of the lawyers muttered before the trial began. What's happening in the court sessions? This Monday, one of the issues brought to the table was the Tivissa landfill.

Alfonso Manuel López Salgueiro, who in 2002 was the Director General of the Environment for the Generalitat (Catalan government), made it clear that he received no "coercion" to grant the environmental permit for the landfill, a project by Gustavo Buesa and Josep Mayola, through Gestión y Recuperación de Terrenos (Land Management and Recovery). The eldest son was also involved in the business, earning 5.3 million euros: he acquired half of the company for 5,000 euros fifteen days after receiving the environmental permit and sold it again two years later to Buesa y Mayola for 5.3 million euros. The witness testified that he received "absolutely no pressure" from the Pujol family to make a decision in favor of the landfill. Under questioning by Carles Monguilod, the lawyer for one of the businessmen, he made it clear that the authorization had to be granted—no exceptions—if the "requirements" were met. It was not a public tender, but a "regulated" administrative procedure in which there was no room for discretion.

What was the firstborn doing?

The Tivissa landfill business is just one of the operations of the eldest son of the Pujol family that are under scrutiny in this trial. In fact, during Monday's session, several witnesses were asked the same type of questions: what exactly did Jordi Pujol Ferrusola do to earn thousands of euros in these deals, and if he acted as an intermediary, what exactly did he contribute to the operation? For example, Cristian Gómez Martínez, who worked at the company Isolux, testified about the awarding of a rural electrification line in Gabon in which Jordi Pujol Ferrusola also allegedly profited. He recounted finding documentation that made "allusions" to the former president's eldest son: "I can't give you any more details," he lamented. Lawyer Óscar Morales, representing Luis Delso – who was president of Isolux at the time – suggested that the eldest son could have been one of the hundreds of sales agents the company employed and denied that the contracts were "sham" or related to public works projects in Catalonia. Following this, Álvaro Rengifo, who also worked at Isolux, explained that Project Marketing – one of the eldest son's companies – acted as an intermediary because it had "important contacts" in Gabon: "We required market research and commissioned this type of work, especially in countries where we didn't have a presence." Another transaction discussed was Jordi Pujol Ferrusola's involvement in the purchase of plots of land in Plaça Europa in L'Hospitalet and the subsequent construction for 1.3 million euros. Jorge Piera, who was deputy general manager of FCC Construcció, the company that acquired them, explained that the eldest son of the family recommended Alejandro Guerrero, administrator of Famguega, to him. "He introduced him to me as someone in the real estate world who could help us with some business," he recounted. Raquel Canosa, of REIN Real Estate Investments, claimed not to recall Jordi Pujol Ferrusola's role, despite having invoiced for the transaction. She asserted that he was not involved in the purchase and sale of some offices on Romero Girón Street in Madrid. Neither was José Ramón Ruiz Carrero, who was director of administration and finance at FCC Construcció, since he stated that the eldest son "did not appear" in the advice provided to find offers and investment opportunities abroad.

Praise for Pujol from Adolfo Suárez's circle

However, the most memorable moment of the day came from the first witness, who is deaf and needed the woman accompanying him to sit beside him and act as his interpreter. This was Miguel Rodrigo Domènech, who presented himself as someone with a "serious relationship with truth and justice," a close collaborator of former Spanish President Adolfo Suárez, and Salvador Dalí's lawyer. He, too, couldn't recall whether the eldest son of the Pujol family had acted as an intermediary in the sale of some solar panels in Ciudad Real, but he emphasized that at that time many people were doing that kind of work: "Like flies on honey," he quipped. He then took the opportunity to offer political praise for former President Jordi Pujol: "I have affection for him because of his political acumen in defending Catalonia and the Spanish state."