The president of the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ), Vicente Guilarte, sees Pedro Sánchez’s reaction of giving himself five days to reflect on whether he was still in the position of president of the Government “disproportionate” after a judge opened proceedings for a complaint against his wife, Begoña Gómez.
Vicente Guilarte made these statements to journalists before opening a conference this Monday at the Complutense University on “Why the CGPJ is not renewed”, in which representatives of the judicial associations participated. He has been asked about the criticism of the judiciary and specifically of the judge who has opened proceedings following a complaint from Manos Médicas for alleged crimes of influence peddling and corruption in business against Begoña Gómez.
“I have to defend the judges, I don’t think there is any issue that should be imputed to them, and there is a certain normality in a judicial action that has unleashed a gigantic and unsuspected effect,” Guilarte considered. And he has estimated “the cause-effect relationship that has occurred” in Sánchez’s reaction to be a little disproportionate. “Whatever the judge has done well is in principle and if there are arguments for this not to continue, then it should be filed without further ado,” he has settled on the matter.
Guilarte has been pessimistic that Sánchez’s mere decision to continue as head of the Executive will accelerate the renewal of the CGPJ, pending for more than five years when the two main parliamentary groups, those of the PSOE and the PP. And he believes that the CGPJ is not renewed “because politicians want, both, to capture their share of power in the judicial field.”
“I believe that things need to be calmed down a bit, we have experienced a few days of great concern and uncertainty, now there may be more conflicts and enough has already been put on the judiciary and it is not a very favorable climate,” he warned. And she added: “Everything is very deteriorated and we must make a very global pact and reorganize relations with the legislative branch and the executive branch.”
For her part, the president of the Professional Association of the Judiciary (APM), María Jesús del Barco, has described Sánchez’s decision as “foreseeable.” “There were no reasons to resign due to a criminal procedure that is normally followed when there is possible evidence of the commission of a criminal act and, in the same way that it is opened, it can be closed if after the investigation procedures it is seen that there is no there is nothing,” he commented.
María Jesús del Barco regretted that during these days of reflection by Sánchez “we have heard about judicial coups and the media have been attacked for not doing their job well.”
Regarding the renewal of the CGPJ, he has pointed out that “the PSOE refuses to make a modification to the organic law and with the PP it does not want to agree on anything at all but the situation of the Council today is unsustainable and it is necessary that they reach an agreement as “they would have to agree on many issues that affect justice.”
The spokesperson for Judges for Democracy, Edmundo Rodríguez, pointed out about Sánchez’s decision that “it was an act of democratic normality and there was simply one person who was affected by what was happening.” In his opinion there is “an instrumentalization by some political parties of judicial work” and he has asked their leaders for responsibility “so that they act with restraint and prudence.”
And regarding the complaint against Begoña Gómez, he has indicated: “We trust that the judicial system functions normally, that if there is some type of evidence to be pursued, but if there is not, that whoever has filed a baseless complaint will be held accountable. “.
Regarding the renewal of the CGPJ, he has considered that “there is a party, the PP, that does not comply with the law and that has proposed blackmail” to change the form of election.
