Sánchez under pressure: police search party headquarters
The Spanish police have raided the headquarters of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's ruling Socialist Party (PSOE) in Madrid. The Civil Guard said the search was prompted by allegations of illegal party financing. Just last week, former socialist Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was placed under investigation over alleged influence-peddling in connection with a bailout loan for the airline Plus Ultra.
PM under attack from all sides
The Spanish prime minister is in the eye of a storm, La Stampa reports:
“His opponents in the [conservative] PP are calling for new elections, the Vox party has denounced a 'mafia system', and the [left-wing] coalition partner Sumar has warned him not to cross certain 'red lines'. The seven Catalan MPs from Junts could pull the plug at any moment, as could the six Basque nationalists from the PNV. ... Europe's last socialist head of government is facing his most difficult period. Yet the prime minister has displayed enviable composure: full cooperation with the judiciary, unconditional support for his friend and mentor José Luis Zapatero, and no plans to call new elections. At least for now.”
People are exhausted
Author Azahara Palomeque comments on the case in El País:
“The charges against José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero are yet another inescapable blow in a series that is leaving us bereft of leaders. ... Representative democracy seems incapable of producing a leader who actually keeps their promises, and the agonising wait for one who does is exhausting citizens. ... Whether Zapatero is guilty or not remains to be seen; the problem is that dissatisfaction is growing as the legal proceedings drag on endlessly. ... The downfall of our idols coincides with the rise of techno-fascism, an uncontrolled climate crisis, the weakening of the welfare state and a cognitive decline of unprecedented proportions, driven by excessive screen time.”
A coup in slow motion
Author Javier Valenzuela criticises Spain's judiciary and media in an article on eldiario.es:
“It's best not to take sides. If something like this can happen to Zapatero and to Sánchez's wife and his brother, if it can happen to the Attorney General and could soon even happen to the prime minister himself, just imagine what they could do to us. ... They can drag you through the dirt for years until, in the end, after you're already dead, a European court declares you innocent. Some call it a slow-motion coup. ... The overthrow of legitimate governments with armed force is frowned upon in the West, which considers itself democratic, but this can just as easily be achieved through legal proceedings and media campaigns.”