Madrid: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has agreed to testify in a preliminary investigation into corruption in the business dealings of his wife, Begona Gomez, but will do so in writing, a court file showed on Wednesday.
Sanchez has denied any wrongdoing by his wife and has repeatedly dismissed the allegations as part of a smear campaign aimed at undermining his government.
Gomez is being investigated for alleged influence-peddling and corruption following a complaint filed by a far-right anti-bribery NGO called “Manos Limpias” – Spanish for “Clean Hands”.
Judge Juan Carlos Peinado, who is leading the investigation, on Monday called on the Socialist prime minister to testify as a “witness” as part of the investigation into allegations of influence peddling.
The judge said he would hear Sanchez at his official residence on July 30 at 11 a.m. (9:00 GMT).
“I am willing, because it cannot be otherwise, to cooperate with the judicial administration, always in strict accordance with the framework established by the Spanish constitution,” Sanchez said in a court filing sent to the judge, a copy of which was obtained by AFP.
But “because of my position as prime minister, my declaration will have to be made in writing,” as Spanish law allows, he added.
“As prime minister, it is my duty to respect the law and preserve the proper functioning of the institution I represent,” Sánchez said.
Gomez, who has worked in fundraising for years, mainly for foundations and NGOs, allegedly used her husband’s position as leverage in her professional circles, especially with businessman Juan Carlos Barrabes, who sought public funding.
Barrabes, who teaches part of a master’s course at Madrid’s Complutense University run by Gomez, admitted meeting her five or six times at Moncloa, the prime minister’s official residence, while she was testifying.
Sánchez, who has been in power since 2018, was also present at two of those meetings, he said.
Barrabes, who received two letters of recommendation from Gomez before applying for the multimillion-euro public tender, said he only spoke about issues of innovation, court sources said.
Gomez invoked her right to remain silent during the judge’s questioning on Friday.
When the investigation was launched in April, Sanchez shocked Spain by saying he was considering resigning over what he denounced as a campaign of political harassment by the right. It took him five days to think about it, but he finally decided to stay.
