Zapatero insists on innocence, demands Feijóo respect presumption of innocence

José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, in his first public interview since being imputado for corruption, has insisted on his innocence and demanded that opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo respect the presumption of innocence. In an interview on TVE on July 23, Zapatero expressed gratitude for the support from party members, including Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, but urged them not to believe him out of "faith or affection" but out of conviction based on facts. He acknowledged suffering "mucho" thinking that his situation could harm the PSOE. Source: lavanguardia

Clash with Feijóo

Zapatero directly challenged Feijóo, who had said that without Sánchez's government, Zapatero "no habría podido delinquir." Zapatero retorted that until a firm sentence, "nadie me puede decir que he delinquido," calling it the "abc del Estado de Derecho" and questioning Feijóo's fitness to be prime minister. Source: infobae

Exchange with González

When asked about former Socialist Prime Minister Felipe González's ironic remark that Zapatero lacked the ability to create an offshore company, Zapatero responded: "Él sabrá de eso, yo desde luego no sé" (He might know about that, I certainly don't). Source: lavanguardia

Zapatero stated that he has spoken with Sánchez "not long ago" and intends to keep those conversations private. He concluded by saying that "las humillaciones, las desdichas, los contratiempos son materia prima" for his task of defending his innocence.