Ayuso 'on the ropes' after the latest information about the luxury penthouse that denotes "lack of transparency" and knocks down the "offices" version

The controversy surrounding the luxury penthouse acquired by the Community of Madrid for 6.3 million euros has added new elements this week that again call into question the explanations offered by the Government of Isabel Díaz Ayuso. In just a few days, new details about the search for the property have come to light, the blocking of the file by Planifica Madrid has been denounced, and now, the owner of the property has given her authorization for the details of the operation to be made public.

The latest information, reported this Friday by 'El País', indicates that businesswoman and writer Astrid Gil-Casares has accepted in writing that the sales data can be disseminated. The news has also been corroborated by David Fernández, Ayuso's unauthorized biographer, on TVE's ‘Mañaneros 360’, and had been anticipated by journalist Ernesto Ekaizer.

This permission is relevant because Planifica Madrid, the public company that managed the acquisition, had until now used the existence of third parties as an argument for not providing documentation related to the operation. According to what it had conveyed to Transparency, the file affected other people and it was necessary to have their authorization before it could be made public.

Now, with the owner's approval, that limitation could disappear and Transparency would have a clear path to provide information about a purchase that the Community of Madrid kept out of public knowledge until it became known last July 29.

Gil-Casares herself had been linked to a confidentiality agreement during the operation, which prevented her from commenting on certain aspects of the sale. After the acquisition came to light, she explained that she could not talk about “the circumstances of the operation” and stated: “In any case, I am completely unaware of the intended use for said property.”

The requirements that question the "offices" version

The seller's authorization comes after 'El País' revealed how the search for the property that Planifica Madrid would end up buying began. According to this information, between January and March, the Ayuso Government would have conveyed to a real estate agency specializing in luxury homes the characteristics that the property should meet.

The official explanation placed the origin of the operation in the need to temporarily have a space for the Executive's "offices" while the works on the Real Casa de Correos were being carried out. However, the conditions communicated to the real estate agency established the search for a home of "between 250 and 400 square meters and a large terrace."

The penthouse that the public company finally acquired largely fit these characteristics. The property has 485 square meters and nearly 200 meters of terrace and had been advertised since January 31 for 6.6 million euros. Finally, the operation closed for 6.3 million.

According to sources close to the operation cited by 'El País', a high-ranking official from Planifica Madrid then contacted the real estate agency that was marketing the property through an advertisement published online. The company presented at least two other properties to the public officials, both of lower price, but they were discarded.

These data once again put the Community of Madrid's explanation about the alleged destination of the penthouse and the process that led the autonomous administration to finally opt for a home with these characteristics under the spotlight.

Planifica Madrid blocks PSOE's access to the file

In addition to the new information about the search for the property, there is the complaint filed this week by the PSOE of Madrid. The socialists have accused Planifica Madrid of preventing a regional deputy from accessing the complete file of the operation.

The request had been submitted by socialist parliamentarian Tatiana Jiménez on August 6, a few days after the purchase became known. However, according to the PSOE's complaint and 'Público's' publication, Planifica Madrid responded with a burofax stating that the request should be processed through the Madrid Assembly.

The socialists have used this episode to denounce a "lack of transparency" surrounding the purchase of the penthouse, an operation carried out by a public company dependent on the Ministry of the Presidency.

The PSOE also questions whether the property could function as an office and maintains that it is a luxury apartment that would not have the necessary authorization for that use. The Community, for its part, had defended that the home would temporarily serve the Executive during the works on the presidential headquarters.

The controversy intensified after it became known that the Community had decided to put the penthouse up for sale. The operation was formalized in April and was not publicly communicated then. After coming to light on July 29, the Madrid government announced the next day that it would sell the property for a starting price of 6.69 million euros and that it would allocate the funds obtained to recover the areas affected by this summer's fires in the Sierra Oeste.

Ayuso's Government avoids explanations

While information about the operation accumulates, Ayuso has chosen not to delve into the substance of the criticism. During her visit to San Martín de Valdeiglesias, the Madrid president again avoided answering questions about the purchase and ended the controversy with a "It's for sale, bye bye."

Nor did the Minister of Presidency, Justice and Local Administration, Ángel García Martín, offer explanations about the operation when asked about Planifica Madrid's decision not to provide the file. Instead, he accused the left of trying to use the controversy to "cover up, or try to cover up, rather, what is happening in our country."

Martín then directed his criticism towards Pedro Sánchez for the management of the migratory crisis in Ceuta and even accused the President of the Government of being "a traitor to Spain and to Spaniards" for being "resting in the Mareta Residence, while Ceuta was invaded."

The controversy also comes after the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, acknowledged that he knew since April that Ayuso's Government was looking for a space to temporarily move its offices during the works of the Presidency headquarters.

With the owner's authorization to make public the details of the operation, the requirements transferred to the real estate agency and the blockade denounced by the PSOE, the purchase of the penthouse faces a new week marked by doubts about its management, its destination and the level of transparency with which the entire operation has been carried out.