ERC boasts about not having corruption within their ranks despite the DGAIA scandal

Corruption strikes Spain once again, with scandals this time affecting PSOE and leaving the Government hanging by a thread. As happens in these cases, parties use corruption as a political weapon. All of them claim they're not like the others, although citizens feel that they're all the same.

This case doesn't only affect PSOE, but also makes its partners like ERC uncomfortable. The Republicans have always boasted that they haven't had a single corruption case among their ranks in their 95 years of existence. In recent hours, several of their leaders have repeated this idea to distance themselves from PSOE and defend their integrity.

ERC's spokesperson in Parliament, Esther Capella, said yesterday that "We represent a political organization with almost one hundred years of history that no one can point to for cases of this kind." Capella did point to Vox for an alleged corruption case that, however, the Prosecutor's Office eventually dismissed.

Rufián also exclaimed from his seat in Congress that "The left can't steal, we can't steal, they can." Local leaders like Rubén Arenas also defend the party's integrity. "Ninety-three years of history without a single corruption case support us, we're the alternative to all this mess," he stated.

But in recent hours, many have also remembered the DGAIA scandal. The Audit Office warned of the diversion of €168 million (168 millones de euros) in the Department of Social Rights when it was controlled by ERC. 

Numerous irregularities have been uncovered in the foster care service and aid to minors under guardianship. Although the case directly affects Esquerra, PSC and Comuns are trying to keep it from going further so it doesn't affect the stability of the Govern. This isn't just a case of alleged corruption (the courts will have to decide this), but also of a cover-up among parties.

However, this isn't the only shadow of corruption threatening the Republicans. The courts are also investigating the involvement of former ERC minister Joan Ignasi Elena in a possible crime of contract splitting. Former minister Xavier Vendrell was also investigated for the rezoning of some land in Cabrera de Mar.

Other cases involving ERC

ERC has also been implicated in corruption cases at the local level such as the Shirota case and the Innova case, in Reus. Although one of the most striking was in Sitges, where the mayor and eight councilors are being investigated for alleged embezzlement and malfeasance. Another scandal is the Manga case, the Catalan offshoot of the Pokemon case, which affected Republican leaders like Jordi Orobitg and Josep Carrapiço.

A corruption case that did result in a sentence was the tobacco smuggling case involving former ERC minister Jordi Ausàs. The Supreme Court sentenced him to four years in prison.

ERC may argue that these are isolated cases, some without a final sentence, unlike the systemic corruption affecting parties like PSOE and PP. But it's at least bold to say that Esquerra hasn't had corruption cases in 95 years of history. Especially when it appears in the photo of the most scandalous case of recent years in Catalonia, which is the DGAIA case.