National
Mariano Rajoy does not trust Esperanza Aguirre, according to reports
By h.b.
Apr 5, 2008 - 10:20 AM

Website www.elconfidential.com is claiming that the leader of the Partido Popular, Mariano Rajoy, is prepared to bring in the Mayor of Madrid, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, to be part of his governing team if Esperanza Aguirre declares herself to be a candidate against him to lead the party at the PP party congress, to be held in Valencia in June.

Rajoy and Aguirre held a three hour lunch together last Wednesday, but the contents of the discussion are not known. The website says that Rajoy could use the popular Gallardón, who has never seen eye to eye with Aguirre, to replace Angel Acebes as the party Secretary General. It claims that Aguirre was sufficiently ambiguous about her intentions during the meal that Rajoy does not trust her.

Meanwhile a third party has opened a webpage supporting Esperanza Aguirre to lead the party in 2012. www.esperanza2012.com went off line for a time, it claims because of the high traffic it is receiving. Set up by ‘a group of members and voters of the Partido Popular’, it has openly criticised the decision of Mariano Rajoy to name Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría as the new spokesperson for the party in Congress.

Is Manuel Pizarro waving goodbye? - Archive Photo EFE

There is also speculation that the man brought in from the being the head of Endesa, Manuel Pizarro, to head the PP economic team, could be about to resign. Reports indicate that he has already turned down the post of being the party’s economic spokesman, the post has now gone to Cristóbal Montoro.

Pizarro, who was the party’s number two candidate for Madrid at the General Election, could abandon the party, just three months after joining, according to the Atlas news agency. He is expected to return to big business, having had to give up several posts to stand at the poll.