Francisco Camps has reason to celebrate. The Popular Party’s former president of the Valencia region has been absolved of charges of taking bribes in the form of designer suits and other garments from a businessman at the heart of the Gürtel corruption scandal. After a two-week trial, the jury voted, five votes to four, that the accusations could not be proved. But while Camps has expressed his joy at defeating the conspiracy he says was behind this case, his own party has been less jubilant. Virtually all the senior party figures who have responded to the verdict have advised Camps to take a break from politics, from Valencia mayor Rita Barberá to Alberto Fabra, his successor as regional … [Read more...] about Valencia’s Camps is off the hook, but something still smells rotten
Francisco Camps
¡Viva la corrupción!
The unthinkable has happened and Valencia regional premier Francisco Camps has stood down due to his imminent trial to face corruption charges. The decision, it seems, did not come from Camps himself, who had clung to his post like a limpet despite mounting evidence that he received around €14,000 worth of tailored clothes from businessmen in exchange for awarding lucrative contracts on behalf of the regional government. Instead, it was reportedly Popular Party leader Mariano Rajoy who pressured Camps to either step aside or declare himself guilty. Either option would avoid a damaging corruption trial of a high-profile PP baron in the autumn, when the party might be waging a general … [Read more...] about ¡Viva la corrupción!
Spanish TV journalism’s identity crisis
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero visits the Canary Islands and the sound of onlookers booing him is edited out of the evening news; the prime minister and opposition leader Mariano Rajoy both speak on the same issue, yet Zapatero gets half a minute more TV coverage; Popular Party (PP) number two María Dolores de Cospedal gets interrogated on a breakfast-time show over her party's attacks on the public broadcaster. It's quite clear, isn’t it? Televisión Española is a puppet of the Socialist government. At least, that’s what the PP is alleging. The party charges that the public broadcaster, which Zapatero pledged to depoliticise and free of government intervention, is more susceptible to … [Read more...] about Spanish TV journalism’s identity crisis
Who cares about corruption anyway?
With the May 22 local elections looming, we now know the content of political parties’ electoral lists. El País’ assertion that over 100 of the candidates on those lists are under investigation for alleged corruption may be shocking, but it’s hardly surprising. There a several main reasons for the enormous wave of political corruption in Spain in recent years, which I explored in an article last year: the mad money generated by the real estate bubble; the country’s system of autonomous regions, where local politicians can hoard power; a laissez-faire attitude on the part of many voters, who refuse to punish their corrupt representatives; and a media that rarely indulges in profound … [Read more...] about Who cares about corruption anyway?
The mystery of Rajoy and the Spanish economy
“I know about economics. I’m not an economist but I know about economics and I have aides whom I consult.” This comment, made during a recent television interview, is not very reassuring coming from a man who aspires to become Spain’s prime minister in the near future. But then Mariano Rajoy is rarely unequivocal in his handling of the conservative Popular Party (PP) he leads. According to many, his reluctance to be clear-cut and firm is typical of the ambiguous Galician character. One obvious example is Rajoy’s management of the ongoing corruption scandal rocking his party. The lack of a clear policy on this has meant that some PP politicians facing investigation for the Gürtel … [Read more...] about The mystery of Rajoy and the Spanish economy