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POLITICS

Sánchez chosen to lead Socialists in PM race

Spain's opposition Socialists on Sunday named party chief Pedro Sánchez as their candidate to run for prime minister in a year-end general election in which upstart parties are expected to make inroads.

Sánchez chosen to lead Socialists in PM race
Pedro Sanchez will run for Prime Minister in general election later this year. Photo: Dani Pozo / AFP

Sánchez, a telegenic 43-year-old parliamentarian, vowed in his acceptance speech to make the fight against joblessness and corruption the centrepiece of his government if he is elected.

“The years pass and Spanish society continues to face two problems which drain our strength and undermine our social moral. Two challenges which I vow to eradicate: unemployment and corruption,” he said before 2,000 party members in Madrid.

Sánchez took the reins of the party in July 2014 after the Socialists suffered their worst-ever election showing in a European Parliament vote, leading the previous leader Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba to step down.

Support for the Socialists has plummeted since they lost power to the conservative Popular Party in the last general election in November 2011 after two terms in office.

The party presided over the early years of Spain's devastating economic downturn which was sparked by the collapse in 2008 of a decade-long property bubble and has struggled to overcome criticism over how their last government handled the economy.

The Socialists were chided by some for responding too late and by others for succumbing too easily to the austerity policies imposed by Brussels which they blame for Spain's jobless rate of 23.8 percent.

The party has lost supporters to two new parties — anti-austerity party Podemos which is close to Greece's ruling Syriza party and to a lesser extent to market friendly Ciudadanos, which are both expected to make inroads in the next election.

The date of the next election has not been announced, but it is expected to be held at the end of the year.

Polls suggest that it will be a four-way race in which no party wins an outright majority, making post-vote alliance-building necessary.

Political parties in Spain do not always put forward the party chief to lead their election campaign but Sanchez received strong backing from the party as their candidate for prime minister.

Some critics however dismissed Sánchez, who only recently burst into the political limelight, as a lightweight and criticised his willingness to appear on lowbrow television shows.

But he appears to have halted the slide in support for the Socialists.

In a poll published on Sunday in top-selling daily newspaper El Pais, Sánchez came second amongst the most favoured politicians after the leader of Ciudadanos, 35-year-old Albert Rivera.

During last month's regional and local elections, the Socialists came in second place after the Popular Party with 25 percent of the vote. 

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CORRUPTION

Spanish govt to ‘oversee’ scandal-hit football federation

The Spanish government decided Thursday to create a commission to 'oversee' the country's scandal-hit football federation (RFEF) and try to pull it out of crisis.

Spanish govt to 'oversee' scandal-hit football federation

“The Spanish government adopted this decision to redress the serious situation of the RFEF so that the organisation could enter a stage of renewal in a stable climate,” the National Sports Council (CSD), an agency dependent on the Ministry of Sports, announced.

Spain are set to host the 2030 World Cup along with Portugal and Morocco, but in recent months the RFEF has lurched from one embarrassment to another.

The CSD said it will create a “commission of supervision, standardisation and representation” led by “independent personalities” which will “oversee the RFEF during the coming months in response to the federation’s crisis and in defence of Spain’s general interests”.

According to the Spanish press, former Spain coach and 2010 World Cup winner Vicente del Bosque could be one of the members of this commission.

Former RFEF president Luis Rubiales resigned in disgrace last September after his forcible kiss on the lips of Women’s World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso and is now being investigated in a separate corruption probe.

The only candidate to replace Rubiales, Pedro Rocha, is also being investigated, while a report from the country’s leading sports court said the RFEF had taken decisions “beyond its remit”.

One such decision was the renewal of Spain coach Luis de la Fuente’s contract in February.

It was the sport court’s report that led to Thursday’s CSD decision to oversee the federation.

Elections for the RFEF presidency are currently scheduled for May 6th.

The Secretary of State for Sport and CSD president, José Manuel Uribes, on Thursday urged the RFEF “to limit its functions to the mere ordinary administration of the entity, as required by law”.

‘Unacceptable situation’

The CSD will meet again next Tuesday to analyse the situation and make a ruling, if necessary, on the corruption case opened by the sports court against Rocha, who took over from Rubiales on an interim basis.

In a year when RFEF will be responsible for Spain’s teams at the European Championship and the Olympic Games, the Spanish government is aiming “to restore the reputation, the good name and the image of Spanish football and complete the electoral process with a renewed assembly for the 2024-2028 period,” said Uribes in the CSD statement.

“We have to look after what we have in the future, the immediate future, which is the planning of the World Cup,” Uribes said in an appearance at Spain’s Congress of Deputies.

He pledged that the government will do everything to sort out the “unacceptable situation” at the RFEF.

Uribes also said he was “in constant communication with FIFA” regarding the RFEF.

“The CSD is going to guarantee that Spanish football maintains its excellence at the sporting level and also stands out as exemplary at the institutional level,” Uribes insisted on Thursday.

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