On Friday, the Second Vice President sent a message to Figo from Mexico City, where she met with Mexico’s Minister of Labor and Social Welfare, Marath Bolaños. After the head of the Popular Party, Alberto Nunez Viejo, went to Catalan businessmen to ask them to put pressure on Junts and the ERC to force them to submit Pedro Sánchez’s proposal, Díaz described the gesture as “extremely dangerous” and suggested that the popular leader had lost all his “democratic credibility” by seeking to destabilize the government. He concluded during a press conference from the Spanish Embassy, ”In Spain, citizens rule by voting. These companies do not rule.”
Díaz also pointed to the Spanish Employers Association, after they asked to resume negotiations after 20 months of talks to reform the Occupational Risk Prevention Law. “Let them tell the Spaniards which side they are on, whether it is the institutional role they were playing before this legislature in the legitimate defense of corporate interests, or in the service of the far right and Figo, as we see today with what he just said,” he declared after the popular president asked for a vote on the proposal to censure businessmen. He added: “He is asking the Catalan and Spanish businessman to rise up against the Spanish government to overthrow it. It is clear that Mr. Figo has completely lost his democratic credibility.”
Regarding the imprisonment of former Socialist MP Jose Luis Abalos and his former advisor Koldo Garcia, Diaz pointed out that the problem of corruption in the Spanish public administration must be addressed through prevention. “Albalos is not the only problem,” he noted, before stressing once again the need for an independent body working to combat the culture of corruption in state institutions. “The only compensation in Spain is by criminal means when the damage has already been done,” he lamented.
The second vice president stressed that she was not concerned about how the possible suspension of Abalos after his reported “remand jail time without bail” would affect the votes of the SWP and Somar in Congress. The Council is waiting until the precautionary measure becomes final before withdrawing its seat and applying Article 21 of the regulations, which stipulates that “MPs are suspended from exercising their rights and parliamentary duties whenever they obtain permission based on a request from the Chamber and sign the indictment order, and they are in a state of pretrial detention for the duration of that.”