The National Court orders to block Zapatero's accounts

MadridAfter the indictment on Tuesday of former Spanish president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, a new move from the National Court. Judge José Luis Calama has ordered to block 490,780 euros from the accounts of the former socialist leader, the amount he received from the company at the epicenter of the investigation, Análisis Relevante, owned by his friend Julio Martínez Martínez. The magistrate, according to tribunal sources, has also ordered the blocking of all accounts of the other companies investigated in the case.

It should be noted that the judge's suspicion is that Zapatero collected commissions through this company and others to achieve the rescue of the airline Plus Ultra, something that the former Spanish president denies. He does admit, in any case, that he invoiced for Análisis Relevante as a consultant.

What is in the spotlight is the Spanish government's loan to Plus Ultra in 2021, in the middle of the pandemic, of 53 million euros, but Moncloa defends its legality. Sources from the Spanish executive, in fact, have reaffirmed themselves this Thursday on the granting of this aid. They refer to a chronology of events: they explained that on March 9, 2021, Plus Ultra received aid from the Fund for the Support of the Solvency of Strategic Companies (FASEE), and asserted that it "complied with the requirements" and that everything was done following a regulated administrative process. In this regard, it cites other companies that also received aid for a total of 890 million euros, such as Air Europa, Volotea, Air Nostrum, Wamos Air, and Evelop Airlines. An award, they emphasize, in which there is no room for "discretion, arbitrariness, or discrimination", as several people are involved: technicians from the State Society of Industrial Holdings (SEPI), external advisors, and the company itself, in addition to a "dozen" technical reports.

Judge Calama points out that Plus Ultra could have used Zapatero to obtain this money. From Moncloa they implicitly deny it when they affirm that there is an "exhaustive control" by the administration of these loans. Furthermore, they add that it was also audited by investigating court number 15 of Madrid, by the Public Prosecutor's Office and various popular accusations, and that it was finally validated. At the same time, they also recall that it was reviewed by the European Commission, the General Intervention of the State Administration, the Court of Auditors and also by the Court of Justice of the European Union. For its part, Plus Ultra, in a statement, has shown itself to be available to the justice system to collaborate and expresses "respect" for the judicial process. At the same time, it assures that the company's economic activities continue normally.

In this way, after the initial shock, Moncloa tries to take the reins of the crisis and weave a defense strategy. If Zapatero's influence peddling is proven, it would drag down the entire Sánchez executive, as it would imply that someone in the public sector was influenced. In this regard, the entity Iustitia Europa has already announced a lawsuit against the entire council of ministers, and the popular accusation of Hazte Oír has requested that the former minister María Jesús Montero, who was in charge of SEPI at the time, appear before the National Court. This Thursday El Confidencial publishes from sources close to the investigation that the summary of the case points to the involvement of "high-ranking officials" of the government.

The PP does not believe them

For its part, the PP does not believe Moncloa and has announced a "total offensive" in the Senate to try to find out more details about this bailout and Zapatero's alleged intervention. The popular parliamentary spokesperson in the upper house, Alicia García, has announced that they will call María Gertrudis Alcázar, who has been Zapatero's secretary for years, and former Minister of Social Security José Luis Escrivá, among other names, to the SEPI investigation commission, which is already underway, for having contributed to the alleged irregularity. In the case of Escrivá, currently governor of the Bank of Spain, the PP maintains that he would have "magically unblocked," at Zapatero's request, the bailout by deferring a debt with Social Security.

Sources from the current Ministry of Social Security reply that the granting of this deferral "was confined at that time to current regulations and normal procedure." "It is a usual tool" that is carried out with "the utmost rigor," they maintain. The Popular Party, on the other hand, insists on giving veracity to the hypothesis of Zapatero's pressures to profit from the bailout and also points to Pedro Sánchez. "He threw open the doors to Zapatero and gave him a free hand for his businesses," García assured at a press conference.

The businessman Víctor de Aldama has also referred to the case this Thursday. Within the framework of his statement before the National Court regarding the purchase of masks in the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, he said that Zapatero used single-use mobile phones like those allegedly possessed by those involved in the Koldo case. According to Efe, the businessman explained that former minister José Luis Ábalos, Koldo García – who was his advisor – and Víctor Ábalos – his son – used these types of devices. Rubén Villalba, a Civil Guard commander also under investigation, provided them, and to communicate through these terminals, they used the expression "have coffee".