A new political scandal is brewing in the Spanish Senate: Partido Popular has initiated the creation of a special commission to investigate the activities of Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales (SEPI). The decision comes amid ongoing proceedings related to the Koldo case, but this time the focus shifts solely to SEPI and its possible links to Venezuela. This attempt to separate the issues appears to be the opposition\u2019s effort to leave no stone unturned in their search for compromising evidence against the government.<\/p>\n
At the center of attention are individuals already familiar to investigators: former socialist Leire D\u00edez, ex-SEPI head Vicente Fern\u00e1ndez, and businessman Antxon Alonso. All three were detained and soon released on bail. Senators now intend to find out if public funds were used for dubious deals, and whether this money could have supported Nicol\u00e1s Maduro\u2019s regime in Venezuela.<\/p>\n
The Venezuelan connection<\/p>\n
Particular scrutiny is on the case involving airline Plus Ultra, which SEPI bailed out from bankruptcy. According to Partido Popular, the decision may have been driven by more than just economic motives\u2014there might have been political interests as well. The opposition suspects that, through this mechanism, Pedro S\u00e1nchez\u2019s government could have provided support to the Maduro regime using Spanish taxpayers\u2019 money.<\/p>\n
The situation has escalated following recent events in Venezuela: the arrest of the former president and the appointment of Delcy Rodr\u00edguez as interim head of state. Against this backdrop, Partido Popular is increasing pressure, demanding explanations about potential links between Spanish officials and Venezuelan authorities. Questions regarding transparency and the fairness of public fund distribution are becoming ever more pressing.<\/p>\n
Political battles<\/p>\n
High-profile hearings are expected soon in the Senate. The date has already been set\u2014January 15, when Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Mar\u00eda Jes\u00fas Montero, as well as Minister for the Ecological Transition Sara Aagesen, will answer senators\u2019 questions. The opposition links their names to possible irregularities within SEPI and suspects involvement in fuel-related schemes.<\/p>\n
On the same day, a new commission to investigate SEPI will be officially established. Partido Popular holds an absolute majority in the Senate, making the outcome of the vote a foregone conclusion. Behind the scenes, there is already talk that the inquiry could touch on not only economic, but also diplomatic aspects, given the possibility of \u2018services\u2019 provided to foreign regimes.<\/p>\n
Questioning and intrigue<\/p>\n
This week, another high-profile event is expected: former minister Jos\u00e9 Luis \u00c1balos, currently in custody, is to give testimony as part of the Koldo case investigation. Partido Popular is insisting on his personal appearance in the Senate, but the final decision rests with the Supreme Court. \u00c1balos has already received official notification to appear at the hearing.<\/p>\n
Senators plan to question him in detail about Delcy Rodr\u00edguez\u2019s visit to Spain six years ago. The then Vice President of Venezuela arrived in Madrid secretly, and according to the opposition, it was \u00c1balos who organized her meeting at Barajas Airport. To this day, it remains a mystery what was in her luggage and what the true purpose of her visit was.<\/p>\n
Internal strife<\/p>\n
In parallel with the SEPI investigation, the Partido Popular is leading several other parliamentary probes: into the work of the Center for Sociological Research (CIS), the aftermath of Hurricane DANA, and the recent energy crisis. All this creates a climate of constant pressure on the government, which is forced to respond to new accusations almost every week.<\/p>\n
During searches carried out by the Central Operational Unit (UCO), documents were seized at Correos, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry for Ecological Transition. All are linked to the alleged network of Leire D\u00edez. The opposition makes no secret that it expects more revelations and has no intention of slowing down.<\/p>\n
Corruption or politics?<\/p>\n
The Partido Popular is outspoken: they claim SEPI has turned into a \u201ccash machine for corruption\u201d under Mar\u00eda Jes\u00fas Montero\u2019s leadership. The opposition accuses the government of funneling millions of euros into rescuing companies, while small businesses are left without support. In response, the government accuses the opposition of politicizing investigations and trying to distract from the country\u2019s real problems.<\/p>\n
This story is more than just another round in the battle between political parties. At stake are public trust in government institutions and the transparency of how public funds are used. Questions remain unanswered, and the intrigue is only growing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A new political scandal is brewing in the Spanish Senate: Partido Popular has initiated the creation of a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":676820,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5312],"tags":[2000,299,104],"class_list":{"0":"post-676819","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-spain","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-europe","10":"tag-spain"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115846026548807787","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=676819"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676819\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/676820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=676819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=676819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=676819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}