The article 92 of the Civil Guard regulations and the scandal of exempting its leadership

The Civil Guard is one of the most respected institutions in Spain, a nation it has served in an admirable way.

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This Thursday, Judge Santiago Pedraz, head of the Instruction Section of the Central Court of First Instance Plaza number 5 of the National Court, charged the director of the Civil Guard, the socialist Mercedes González Fernández, and her deputy operational director (DAO), Lieutenant General Manuel Llamas Fernández, with crimes of prevarication, membership or cooperation with a criminal organization, obstruction of justice, professional disloyalty and disclosure of secrets.

These legal charges are part of the proceedings against the socialist network that sought to "neutralize" legal cases "for the benefit of the PSOE and the inner circle of the president," Pedro Sánchez Castejón, whose wife and brother are currently facing charges for various crimes. These events are extremely serious, and the court decision announced yesterday should have resulted in the immediate suspension of those charged, to avoid tarnishing the good name of an institution highly respected by the Spanish people.

However, applying the same method as to all other socialist corruption scandals, Sánchez and his Interior Minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, have decided to keep the accused in their positions, which will lead to a purely grotesque situation within the armed institute: the Central Operational Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard will have to investigate its two highest-ranking officers while still under their command, with the logical risk of further interference from the accused in the investigations carried out by their subordinates.

In relation to these facts, it should be mentioned that the Law on the Regulation of the Personnel of the Civil Guard establishes this in its Article 92:

"The suspension of duties for Civil Guard officers may be ordered as a consequence of their indictment, formal accusation, or the adoption of any precautionary measure against them in criminal proceedings, or due to the initiation of disciplinary proceedings for a very serious offense.

The Minister of Defense, assessing the seriousness of the alleged acts, the existence or absence of pretrial detention, the harm that the accusation may cause to the Institute, or the public alarm generated, may order the suspension of duties. The Minister of the Interior will determine whether said suspension entails dismissal from their post."

It so happens that the current DAO of the Civil Guard applied that article to suspend members of the armed institute investigated for corruption, but now, in a scandal for all his subordinates, both he and the director general enjoy preferential treatment from the government motivated by political reasons.

With this shameful decision, Pedro Sánchez continues to degrade Spanish public institutions, with the sole purpose of clinging to power for as long as possible (perhaps to avoid facing trial himself), causing ever-increasing damage to the rule of law and its credibility with the public, who see this double standard as the clearest proof of a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution, which states that everyone is equal before the law. An equality that Spanish socialism is constantly trampling on.