Andoni Ortuzar, former president of the PNV, increases Telefónica’s political signatures

A day after ABC revealed the transfer to Telefónica of a close collaborator of the socialist Francisco Salazar, Macarena Álvarez, in the most torrid harassment scandal that shakes La Moncloa and Ferraz, the operator opens the door to another … name of the policy. Andoni Ortuzar, former president of the PNV, will be the new director of Movistar Plus+, as predicted by ‘El Correo’ and this newspaper was later able to confirm. The Basque politician, replaced a few months ago by Aitor Esteban, was key for the motion of censure to move forward which led to the departure of Mariano Rajoy and elevated Pedro Sánchez to the presidency of the government in 2018.

The arrival of Ortuzar (and also of Marcos Contreras, who is an independent member of Criteria Caixa, shareholder of Telefónica with an additional 10% as a State through SEPI) occurs in complete negotiation of the ERA massive in the company, a collective dismissal process that affects seven subsidiaries, including Movistar Plus+, and after the share price has been moving at minimum values for years after falling 20% in the last quarter.

Movistar Plus+ is Telefónica TV Services Platform and has a unique structure, since its income statement depends entirely on Telefónica Spain and its board of directors functions more as an advisory body to the parent company than as a corporate governance structure. The average salary of the members is around one hundred thousand euros gross per year and they meet once a month at the Madrid headquarters of Tres Cantos.

In the telecommunications sector, it is emphasized that the arrival of Ortuzar will allow Movistar Plus+ strengthen its links with Administrations and intensify institutional relations. Nobody hides that his arrival is influenced by the search for greater influence if possible on the part of the television platform of the Spanish national operator. But the truth is that he is not the first politician to pass through this board.

Another of the personalities most closely linked to socialist politics is Rosauro Varo, current vice-president of Movistar Plus+.

Ortuzar will share his advice with other old political acquaintances who passed before him through the revolving door of the operator chaired by Marc Murtra: Yolanda Barcina and Javier de Paz. Barcina has served on the board of directors of Movistar Plus+ since 2015, when she left the ranks of the Unión del Pueblo Navarro (UPN), after a bitter end to her mandate as president of Navarra marked by corruption scandals at Caja Navarra. The entity’s general director at the time, Enrique Goñi, is today president of Fundación Telefónica.

However, if there is a personality who stands out for his political ties, it is Javier de Paz, linked to the PSOE since the seventies, when he belonged to socialist youth groups of which he became general secretary. He has served on the board of directors of the operator’s parent company for almost twenty years, until a month and a half ago, when the crisis intensified. pressure from the United States on Nicolás Maduro and attention focused on the affairs of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, De Paz’s mentor. Now outside the board of directors of Telefónica SA, Javier de Paz serves as deputy director of Murtra and non-executive chairman of Movistar Plus+.

Likewise, within the highest governing body of the television platform is Rosauro Varo, as vice-president of Movistar Plus+ since 2023, whose mother is a member of the PSOE of Andalusia, Amalia Rodríguez Hernández.

Among the controversial signings, already at the Murtra stadium – although the selection process began under the presidency of José María Álvarez-Pallete – one of the sons of Cándido Conde-Pumpido also stands out, president of the Constitutional Court very close to the PSOE, who joined Telefónica with the position of director and chief analyst of public policies, competition and regulatory affairs.

Telefónica reduces the number of people affected by layoffs

The operator, in negotiations with the unions, has already reduced the impact of the ERE to some 5,520 workers in total after proposing to reduce minimum departures by 9% in the three main subsidiaries (Spain, Móviles and Soluciones). We are considering a range of between 4,600 and 5,040 outings in these companies, even if the final figure will be linked to the volume of voluntary memberships. In other words, if there were 4,600 members, there would be no more departures in these three subsidiaries. And if this figure is not reached, there will be forced layoffs until it is reached. The remaining departures (around 920) among the minimum 4,600 of these three companies and the total number of 5,520 workers correspond to the EREs of Telefónica SA, Telefónica Global Solutions, Telefónica Innovación Digital and Movistar+.

Today the reality is that not only in the subsidiary Movistar Plus+ sit political figures, but also in the parent company of the group, Telefónica SA, several names also emerge. Especially since the State has entered the shareholding through the SEPI with the purchase of 3% in March 2024which increased gradually and rapidly to reach the current 10%.

It was a few months after the public entry into the Spanish operator that the hand of the government began to pull certain strings in the company. It all ended with the dismissal of Álvarez-Pallete as president, promoted from La Moncloa, to place Marc Murtra as new general director, historically close to the PSC and Indra, of which the State is the main shareholder. Additionally, SEPI requested a position on the board of directors and was placed in that position. Carlos Ocaña as exclusive directorwho later became vice president of the telecommunications company.

Likewise, the situation of a company in which the State maintains a significant participation has led the Vice President of Labor Yolanda Díaz to request explanations by letter to the president of SEPI regarding the destruction of jobs, while the PP – as reported by ABC – has already requested the appearance of Murtra in the Senate to report on its plans for Telefónica.