Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 30 Jan. (Europa Press) –
Businessman Víctor de Aldama, who is allegedly linked to the ‘Koldo case’ and is under investigation for purported charges of organised crime, money laundering, bribery, and influence peddling, exercised his right not to testify before the Research Commission of the Canary Islands Parliament regarding the procurement of medical supplies during the pandemic.
De Aldama, accompanied by his solicitor, merely confirmed that he is acquainted with the former Canarian president and current Minister of Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, mentioning a photograph of them together taken at the socialist headquarters in Ferraz. Thus, his presence in front of the committee was mainly limited to listening to the inquiries from the seven parliamentary parties.
The firm associated with the entrepreneur, Management Solutions, billed the Canarian health service €12.3 million during the pandemic for the supply of three masks.
In previous media statements and legal venues, he claimed that he was asked for €50,000 for towers in exchange for facilitating the sale of masks, but he refused to comply—a claim denied by the minister—and stated that there were kickbacks involved in awarding the renovation works of the old Royal cinemas in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, which were transformed into the headquarters of the Canarian Tax Agency.
Vox representative Nicasio Galván expressed regret that Aldama refuses to break his “silence,” asserting that his testimony would provide “much clarity” in addressing the alleged infractions.
José Alberto Díaz-Estébanez from the nationalist group acknowledged the “anticipation” each of the entrepreneur’s appearances generates and lamented that he chose not to testify due to his “media and legal strategy.” “His silence speaks volumes,” he remarked.
The president of the Socialist Group, Nira Fierro, reproached Aldama for “speaking everywhere” except in Parliament, where he ought to “tell the truth,” suggesting that his silence “betrays him.” “He doesn’t dare because he knows he would be implicating himself,” she stated.
Following this line, she questioned his failure to present evidence to support his “wild claims.” “You have not proven anything; you had the chance to bring all the evidence here and have been unable to because it does not exist,” she asserted.
Fierro briefly clashed with De Aldama while reminding him of his involvement in the hydrocarbon fraud scandal. “Address the matters you need to,” the socialist deputy responded sharply.
