The public prosecutor office asks for the indictment of CiU’s ‘number 3’ for influence peddling

Barcelona (ACN).- On Monday the public prosecutor office asked the judge investigating the irregular allocation of licenses for technical vehicle inspection garages to indict Oriol Pujol, the Secretary General of the CDC, the Liberal party within the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU). The anti-corruption prosecutor suspects that Pujol could have used his position as Catalan Government’s Deputy Minister for Industry at that time to benefit his acquaintances by the allocation of public tenders. After the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, and the leader of the Christian-Democrat side of the CiU, Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida, Oriol Pujol is the Catalan nationalist coalition’s ‘number 3’. He is the Chairman of the CiU’s group in the Catalan Parliament and he is one of the sons of the historical Catalan nationalist leader and President of Catalonia’s Executive for 23 years, Jordi Pujol. Oriol Pujol held a press conference on Monday morning in which he “fully denied” the accusations and hoped not to finally be indicted. In addition, he stated that “it is not by chance” that accusation scandals affecting the CiU have popped up in the current times, when the CiU is leading Catalonia’s self-determination process. However, he stated that “nobody within the CiU will be an obstacle to Catalonia’s self-determination process”, indicating that if he is formally accused of influence peddling in the end, he might temporarily step down from the political front-line. Since Oriol Pujol is a member of the Catalan Parliament, it is the Catalan Supreme Court of Justice that has to decide whether he can be indicted. The anti-corruption prosecutor is basing the accusations on reports from the Spanish Police and the Spanish Tax Agency, which consider Pujol to be a “necessary collaborator” within the plot. Most of the opposition parties are asking for the CiU to put Pujol temporarily aside while he is being investigated.

Pujol “fully denies” the accusations

In a press conference organised after it was known that the anti-corruption prosecutor had asked the judge for him to be indicted, Pujol “fully denied” the accusations. Furthermore, he stated that he has not received any official notes or petitions to testify. However, the prosecutor’s indictment petition has caused a huge political storm, since after the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, and the leader of the Christian-Democrat side of the CiU, Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida, Oriol Pujol is the coalition’s ‘number 3’. In the last few months, the name of Oriol Pujol had already been leaked regarding the investigation case into the irregular allocation of licenses for technical vehicle inspection garages, but they were only rumours, amplified by Spanish nationalist media. However, now the public prosecutor is taking legal action against him.

Pujol links the accusations to those trying to stop Catalonia’s self-determination

Oriol Pujol linked the corruption scandals that have popped up in the last few months affecting the CiU to an attempt to try to derail Catalonia’s self-determination process. He stated that “nothing of what is happening to the CiU [right now] is by chance”. He also brought up the false accusations made one week before the Catalan elections against the incumbent Catalan President and the CiU’s candidate, Artur Mas. These accusations were made by a Spanish nationalist newspaper and turned out to be based on a falsified document. However, Pujol insisted that Catalonia’s political moment is very important and that he “will not hide behind the flag”. In this vein, he said that, if the indictment process goes on, he will not become an obstacle to Catalonia’s self-determination process. However, he also added that he will not take a decision “indicating guilt”. It can be understood that Pujol would consider temporarily stepping down from the political front-line if he is indicted in the end, in order “to defend” himself, something he has not “been able to do yet”, as he reminded.

Most of the opposition parties have asked the CiU to put Pujol aside

Most of the opposition parties have directly asked the CiU to put Pujol temporarily aside, apart from Catalonia’s main opposition party, the Left-Wing Catalan Independence Party (ERC), which refused to explicitly ask for it. However, the ERC warned that if the CiU gets this case “dirtied”, the Catalan self-determination would also become “dirtied”. Therefore, the ERC has asked the CiU to adopt “the necessary measures to preserve the party’s cleanness if the indictment comes into effect”. The Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) asked the CiU to put Pujol aside from his current responsibilities within the party if the indictment is accepted by the judge. According to them, “this is the same formula that we oblige ourselves to adopt” when a member of the Socialist party is suspected to have participated in a corruption case. The People’s Party (PP), which is currently in the spotlight for a corruption scandal that is affecting the party’s main leaders, asked the CiU’s Chairman, Artur Mas – who is also the Catalan President – , to take “consequent and immediate” decisions, as the news are “deeply” affecting the CiU. If Mas does not take such measures – meaning obliging Pujol to resign – they “will not give a good example of fighting corruption”, stated the PP. The Catalan Green Socialist and Communist Coalition (ICV-EUiA) stated that the accusation against Pujol is “very serious” since it affects “the CiU to the bone”. The ICV-EUiA stated that Pujol should resign from all the positions if he is indicted. The anti-Catalan nationalist and populist party Ciutadans (C’s) linked Pujol’s case with that affecting the People’s Party, stating that “corruption is expanding like an oil stain in Spain and also in Catalonia”. C’s asked for greater transparency and urged those involved to resign.