Sánchez urged by party colleagues not to resign

6 months ago 30

Supporters and members of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s party have called on him not to resign as he is expected to announce his decision on Monday, while rumours of him eyeing the role of European Council President continue to simmer.

Last week, Sánchez said he would announce on Monday whether he decided to step down from his role or remain in office after his wife, Begoña Gómez, was the subject of a court’s preliminary investigation for allegations of corruption and influence peddling.

The complaint was filed by Clean Hands, a group founded by Miguel Bernad, a lawyer and former politician with links to the Spanish far-right, who admitted on Thursday that the allegations against Gómez were based on right-wing and far-right news reports.

According to official figures, around 12,500 people demonstrated outside PSOE headquarters in central Madrid on Saturday to urge him to remain at the helm of the progressive coalition government with the far-left Sumar party.

Aside from resigning, other possible scenarios include calling snap elections.

Meanwhile, rumours have been circulating for some time that Sánchez could be set to run for the post of the future president of the European Council, replacing the Belgian Charles Michel.

Amid chants of support for the prime minister, the demonstrators – many of whom arrived in Madrid from other Spanish regions in buses chartered by the PSOE – chanted slogans such as “Pedro no te rindas” (Pedro don’t give up) or “Quédate Pedro” (Pedro stay).

Waving red flags with the Socialist emblems of a fist and a rose, the demonstrators chanted slogans such as “Democracy yes, fascism no” and “Pedro listen, your people are in struggle”.

Among the protesters were several government ministers, including Finance Minister María Jesús Montero, who analysts say could become the new interim leader if he resigns.

Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares (PSOE) said the Socialist Party was reaffirming the formation’s “progressive policies” so that Spain “continues to think in the world” and “continues to lead Europe”.

“We are going to defend politics, because politics is the basis of democracy, in the face of media harassment, in the face of political harassment, in the face of slander, in the face of hoaxes,” Albares stressed.

‘Authoritarian’ attitude not seen since Franco’s dictatorship

Meanwhile, the right-wing Partido Popular (PP/EPP), the main opposition force in the Spanish parliament, and the far-right VOX party, the third largest one, have accused the prime minister of “playing the victim”.

PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo accused Sánchez of adopting an “authoritarian” stance not seen in Spain since the dictatorship of Francisco Franco.

At a rally in Tarragona on Saturday, part of the campaign for the snap Catalan elections on 12 May, Feijóo said that Sánchez’s announced decision to take time for “reflection” was a “show unworthy of a European leader.”

(Fernando Heller | EuroEFE.Euractiv.es)