The Minister of Justice, Nuria Martínez, met this Wednesday with the president of the Catarroja Court of First Instance, who expressed concern about the stabilization process of the four reinforcement positions supporting the investigating judge of the DANA case. The minister assured that the judge will continue to receive reinforcement, although she did not confirm if the same officials, who are very familiar with the complex procedure, would be retained.
The expected date for the reinforcement to end is June 30. The minister explained that the process will initially be carried out through a service commission, and if not filled, the interim staff pool will be used. If still not covered, a competitive examination will be held.
“"The process must first be done through a service commission, and then, if not covered by a service commission, the interim staff pool will be resorted to, and if not covered by the interim staff pool either, we would go to a competitive examination."
The investigating judge of the case complained, in an order issued on April 10, that the Justice Department's decision would cause a “great delay in the investigation” by dismantling the “team” formed by the reinforcement officials. For its part, the Governing Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community (TSJ-CV) also requested the continuity of the reinforcement, “preferably” with “the same personnel”.
The minister expressed the Generalitat's “firm commitment” to “guarantee” that the investigating judge of the DANA macro-case “continues to have the same material and human resources” and the “same number of officials to carry out the investigation under appropriate conditions and with adequate means”.
The head of Justice anticipated that there could be a transition for the “exchange” of “a couple of weeks,” due to the “inherent characteristics of administrative processes.” However, in the case of Catarroja, she added, there will be no “empty chair.” She emphasized that the magistrate will always have four people to provide coverage so that she can continue advancing with the investigation.
Martínez referred to the “sensitivity of the DANA case,” a “very important cause,” and assured that everything requested to date has been addressed. The stabilization process, she concluded, adheres to “objective seniority criteria,” and the four reinforcement positions in the DANA court “did meet that requirement”.
