Ayuso responds to the penthouse scandal with more victimhood, accuses Sánchez of being a "faker" and throws down a challenge to the opposition: "If I have lied, I resign. And if you have lied, resign."

The president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, resorted to victimhood this Friday to defend herself from the controversy over the luxury penthouse acquired with public money in Chamberí. After skirting the issue during the first day of the Debate on the State of the Region, the Madrid leader accused the opposition of promoting a campaign of "personal harassment" against her and her family.

Ayuso denied that the home bought by Planifica Madrid for 6.3 million euros was intended to become her residence. She also attacked the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, for referring to the property as a "huge penthouse" for the Madrid president. "You are a fake, a fraud, and a liar," she launched from the Assembly tribune.

The president dedicated a good part of her speech to defending her private life, her salary, and her personal expenses. She claimed that she pays for all her vacations, assured that she has never wanted to be a "gold digger," and maintained that she has always paid for her homes with her own resources. Questions about who ordered the purchase, what use the penthouse would have, and why that property was chosen remained unanswered.

Ayuso defends her right to an official residence

Ayuso's defense left a striking statement. Although she denied that the penthouse was for her, she argued that she would have the right to an official residence, as is the case with some regional presidents and members of the central government.

"If the president of the Community of Madrid wanted to have a residence, I would think it was very good," she affirmed. Ayuso later insisted that she decided to live by her own means and that she is currently renting. "I have never lived in a penthouse, liars," she repeated during her rebuttal.

The Madrid leader presented the criticisms as another chapter in a persecution that, she maintains, began with reports about her father's company and continued with the commission collected by her brother during the pandemic and the tax fraud case against her partner, Alberto González Amador.

"They have tried, ever since I first sat in this seat, to sink my family and sink me personally," she denounced. With that narrative, Ayuso once again turned a controversy over the use of public money into an offensive against her person, while calling the opposition groups "rabid."

A public purchase surrounded by questions

Planifica Madrid, a company dependent on the Ministry of the Presidency, acquired the property last April 14. The penthouse has 485 square meters, a terrace close to 200, and five bedrooms, and the operation remained outside the transparency portal until it was published by the press more than three months later.

The Madrid government initially explained that the dwelling would serve as a provisional office for Ayuso and a reduced team during future works in the Real Casa de Correos. Those works still lacked adjudication when the penthouse was bought and Planifica Madrid also had an empty office of 478 square meters next to Plaza de Castilla.

The president visited the property after its acquisition. After the operation became known, her Government announced that it would sell it to allocate the income to the reconstruction of the municipalities affected by the fires. The starting price has been set at 6.69 million euros, above the amount paid in April.

Ayuso has avoided specifying during the debate who promoted the search for a dwelling with a large terrace, why a real estate agency specialized in luxury properties was used, or where the complete file is located. Mar Espinar, spokesperson for the PSOE of Madrid, has demanded that it be clarified "who gave the order" and has recalled that the official residences used as a comparison have a known public ownership and purpose.

The president ended up elevating her response to the point of compromising her continuity. "If I have lied, I resign. And if you have lied, you resign," she challenged the opposition. The administrative explanations have once again been left in the hands of the Minister of the Presidency, Miguel Ángel García Martín, responsible for Planifica Madrid, who will appear next week before the Assembly. "Let him tell it," Ayuso concluded.