Madrid, Spain- Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is considering resignation and has suspended all his public duties. This unprecedented decision comes amidst judicial investigation into corruption charges against his wife, Begona Gomez.
The socialist leader who has led the country since 2018, on Wednesday said, while the allegations against his wife are false and he will cancel his public agenda until Monday. On Monday he will appear before media and announce his decision on political future.
“I need to pause and think,” he wrote in a letter shared on his X account. “At this point, I have to ask myself: is it all worth it? I honestly don’t know… whether I should continue to lead the government or renounce this honour.”
The announcement on Wednesday was sent out via a post on his X account, hours after Madrid court opened preliminary investigation into Gomez’s business affairs following the complaint.
The court without providing further details of this case due to it being in early stages. The court gave out the only fact that the complaint was filed by a group Manos Limpias-literally translating to clean hands.
What were the accusations about?
The allegations against Gomez involve influence peddling and corruption, with the focus on her connections to private companies that have allegedly received favours from airline Air Europa and its Spanish holding company Globalia during her time as director of an African research centre at Madrid’s IE business school.
While responding to all the allegations on Gomez, IE stated that it had never received any financial favour from Globalia or any of its entities. Globalia on the other hand remained silent to a requenst for comment from Reuters on Wednesday.
Gomez was accused by Manos Limpias, which describes itself as a union, but mainly works as a platform pursuing legal cases, led by Miguel Bernad Remon, a figure within far right, according to Al Jazeera.
Sanchez in his letter on X, accused his political opponents of conservative People’s Party (PP) Alberto Nunez Feijoo and Santagio Abascal, leader of the far-right Vox Party of collaborating with Manos Limpias to bring him down and that the allegations are politically motivated.
His opponents had launched a baseless “harassment and bullying operation by land, air and sea” to bring about his “personal and political collapse by attacking his wife” he added.
He added saying the latest happenings has made him think about hus decisions, “Now that we’ve reached this point, the question I quite legitimately ask myself is, ‘is it all worth it?’ I sincerely don’t know.”
Prime Minister said that his wife has done nothing wrong and that him and his wife will cooperate with investigation and defend her innocence. Gomez has not commented yet.
People’s Party’s Feijoo said Sanchez was seeking to blame opposition parties of judge’s activities. He said the Prime Minister should give explanation to the public rather than running away. “If his wife has nothing to fear she should go to court and clear her innocence”, he said.
As the nation awaits PM’s final decision, which he has promised to announce on Monday, the political atmosphere is tense. The Prime Minister’s suspension of duties and potential resignation have raised questions about current government’s stability and the political future of Spain.
If Sanchez were to step down, parliament could choose another Prime Minister but given its fracture nature it seems unlikely anyone would be victorious, said Lluis Orriols, a professor in political science at the Carlos III University, Madrid.
