Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in a “letter to citizens” on Wednesday that he was suspending public duties until next week to decide whether to continue leading the government, after a court announced on the same day that it was investigating her his wife for corruption and influence peddling.
“I need to pause and think,” Sanchez in a “citizen letter” shared on his X account. “I urgently need an answer to the question of whether it is worth it (…) whether I should continue to drive government or to relinquish this honor,” he wrote.
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He said he would announce his decision publicly on Monday, according to Reuters.
The shock announcement came after a Spanish court also said on Wednesday it was launching a preliminary investigation into whether Sanchez’s wife, Begona Gomez, had committed a crime of influence peddling and business corruption in her private businesses.
Sanchez said the severity of the attacks he and his wife are facing deserve a commensurate response.
The court investigating Gomez did not provide further details as the case is sealed and in its preliminary phase, saying only that it followed a complaint by the anti-corruption campaign group Manos Limpias – Clean Hands – whose leader has links to the extreme right.
Manos Limpias claims that Gomez used her influence as the prime minister’s wife to attract sponsors for a university master’s course she organized.
Publisher: MI
Tags: Spanish PMs shock announcement court announces investigating wife corruption
