José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero broke his two-month silence yesterday to send a very clear message of support to the Government. Just 24 hours after Julio Martínez Martínez threw him under the bus with his statement to the judge, the former president wanted to make it clear that the money he received for his consulting work had nothing to do with the rescue of the airline Plus Ultra. “I did not speak with anyone from SEPI or the Government, nor with any public authority,” he stated regarding the loan granted by the Executive.
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Zapatero was emphatic in defending his innocence, although he tiptoed around the trail of money: those payments from Plus Ultra to Julio Martínez’s company and his payments to the former president. These are pieces of evidence that presuppose payment for intermediation. But, as Zapatero rightly said, this matter must be corroborated by the judge. “He who accuses must prove,” he added during the interview he granted to La 1. Nor did he clarify the origin of the jewels that appeared in his office, merely stating that they were “a personal courtesy gift from many years ago.”
In short, Zapatero did not dispel the doubts surrounding his actions and made it clear that he was not asking for “an act of faith.” His fundamental objective was to save the current Government from having committed any irregular action in the decision to rescue Plus Ultra. And it will be justice that determines whether he has financially benefited from legal lobbying work or if his influence has involved any act outside the law.
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Where no one can dispute that he is absolutely right is in the violation of his privacy. The disclosure of his agenda with more than 600 activities in two years should make those responsible for the administration of justice blush. It is worth remembering that this is a country where an entire attorney general was convicted for revealing secrets.
Rodríguez Zapatero’s first public appearance confirms that, despite all the elements playing against him, the PSOE’s strategy is clearly offensive and does not seem intimidated by judicial pressure. No one here wants to give up the fight.
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