The judge asks Feijóo for all the messages he sent to Mazón regarding the DANA storm.

BarcelonaThe judge in Catarroja is not satisfied with the messages that the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, received from the former president of the Generalitat, Carlos Mazón, on the night of October 29th of last year. Feijóo had simply complied with the magistrate's request, but decided not to also provide the messages he sent to Mazón. However, as of this Monday, the judge has issued a new request for him to provide the complete conversation, not just the texts from the former head of the Consell. Thus, the investigating judge, Nuria Ruiz Tobarra, requested that the Galician leader be informed "again" of "the possibility of voluntarily providing this case, within three days, with the WhatsApp messages that form an integral part of the conversation" between him and Mazón on that October 29th. Feijóo is scheduled to testify remotely as a witness on January 9th, from his office in Congress.

Everything points to Feijóo accepting the request. Minutes before the judge's request became public, the Popular Party leader had commented on the messages, emphasizing that he was cooperating with the magistrate "100%." Feijóo did not send his phone to the judge, nor did he make a copy of the conversation with Mazón. Instead, he asked a notary to copy the former president of the Generalitat's texts to certify their authenticity and submitted this information to the court, along with an explanation from Feijóo himself to, in his opinion, provide the "context." "If the judge requests it, I will have no problem giving her [his messages]," he had added. The PP president stressed that the judge's requests are not mandatory and that cooperation is "voluntary," which, he asserts, he is doing.

In fact, the terms in which he expressed himself are intended to directly oppose the Spanish president, Pedro Sánchez, in the case of the Attorney General, Álvaro García Ortiz, who precisely claimed to have deleted the contents of his phone shortly after the leak of confidential tax information concerning the partner of the partner of the partner. "Around eight in the evening, I contacted Mazón when I saw news reports," he explained. "I haven't deleted the messages, I haven't changed my phone, I'm not Sánchez. My cooperation is 100%. I'm not going to remain silent when the judge asks me questions, nor will I file a lawsuit. Nor will I speak of lawfare"," he concluded.

The WhatsApps They have played a leading role at other points in the investigation. For example, when former Interior Minister Salomé Pradas—one of the main defendants—provided evidence to her team that, among other things, revealed conversations between Mazón's chief of staff, José Manuel Cuenca, and herself. Cuenca had not provided any evidence because he had deleted all the conversations from that day.

He will not resign

On the other hand, the leader of the People's Party was also outraged that the Spanish government spokesperson, Elma Saiz, had asked him to resign: "Why should I resign? For telling the truth? To cooperate with the judge? To voluntarily hand over everything the judge has asked for? It seems like a joke." Focused on downplaying his role in contact with Mazón on the day of the torrential rains, he doubled down on his controversial statements in which he claimed to have been informed "in real time." However, he added many nuances. His account is that he was very well informed between 8:00 p.m. and 11:30 p.m., even though the torrential rains had been affecting the region since midday, when he had not spoken with the former Valencian president.