Cristina Narbona reiterates in the Senate that she was unaware of the alleged plot involving former PSOE militant Leire Díez and denies having been her "godmother"

The president of the PSOE, Cristina Narbona, appeared this Wednesday before the Senate's investigation commission on the Koldo case, where she defended that she had no knowledge of the alleged plot attributed to former socialist militant Leire Díez. Narbona assured that, after receiving messages in which Díez told her that she had information, she decided to put her in contact with the then Secretary of Organization of the PSOE, Santos Cerdán, considering that he was the appropriate person to assess that matter.

"For me, when she spoke of information, I thought she was referring to facts that were not known, but nothing to do with what is being investigated," Narbona explained during her appearance before the Upper House. The socialist leader insisted that she never had knowledge of the actions that have subsequently been the subject of judicial investigation.

Narbona's appearance comes after the investigation of the so-called Leire Díez case has focused on the former socialist militant's contacts with different party leaders and her alleged efforts related to investigations affecting the PSOE and the Government. The case, instructed by judge Santiago Pedraz, analyzes the alleged actions promoted by Díez to obtain information about the Central Operative Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard and the possible pressures exerted on agents linked to those investigations.

During her statement, Narbona acknowledged that she maintained a "professional relationship" with Leire Díez since 2017, although she denied that there was a relationship of friendship between them or that she acted as her "godmother" within the socialist party. Furthermore, she stated that she was unaware of the meetings that Díez would have held with Santos Cerdán at the socialist headquarters in Ferraz with the aim, according to the investigation, of articulating a strategy to question judicial cases against the PSOE and the Executive.

The president of the PSOE had already defended this same version after appearing last week before judge Santiago Pedraz as a witness. Upon leaving the court, she assured that she had made it "clear" that she had no "knowledge of the alleged plot that is being investigated" and explained that she had known Díez since 2017. According to her account then, the former militant approached her about some alleged "important facts" that, in her opinion, were not related to the issues that justice is now analyzing.

The Central Operative Unit (UCO), in a report incorporated into the summary, states that Díez would have conveyed to Narbona the possibility of providing a "qualified help" to "redirect" certain attacks against the Prime Minister. According to the investigation, the socialist leader's response was to forward that information to Santos Cerdán, who held the party's Organization Secretariat. Narbona has confirmed the existence of these contacts, but maintains that she never received documents or concrete details and that her intervention was limited to transferring the matter to the corresponding organic official.

The Leire Díez case keeps the former socialist militant herself and Santos Cerdán, former PSOE Organization Secretary, as the main protagonists. The investigation tries to clarify whether there was an operation aimed at collecting sensitive information and acting on judicial procedures that affected the party, the Government and the environment of President Pedro Sánchez.