A wave of resignations invaded the political class in Spain, after a series of scandals related to falsifying or falsifying academic qualifications were exposed, which sparked widespread calls for more transparency in the educational records of officials.
The beginning of an opposition minister
The case started on July 21, when Transport Minister Oscar Pointe, a member of the ruling Socialist Party, raised questions about the academic registry of opposition deputy Nilia Nunez from the Conservative Popular Party.
Nunez, 33, had claimed that she obtained scientific degrees in law, public administration and the jurisprudence of the English language, but later recognized that she studied these subjects without completing the required qualifications. She resigned the next day, saying that she was not intending to mislead the audience.
More officials under the microscope
Since then, accusations of other officials began to manipulate their academic qualifications. Among the most notably Juan Manuel Moreno, head of the Andalus Regional Government for the Popular Party, who is accused of claiming a certificate in business administration.
The accusations also affected Pillar Bernabe, the delegate of the central government in Valencia, because of its inaccurate announcement of a certificate in public communication.
The minister is also under pressure
Minister Oscar Pointe did not escape himself from scrutiny, as it was found that he indicated that he had obtained a master’s degree, which was later turned out to be from an academic level lower than what he suggested.
New resignations hit the government
On Thursday, Jose Maria Angel, the socialist official, resigned for efforts to recover from floods in Valencia, after his use was revealed for a false certificate for a job in the public sector.
The next day, Agnasio Heiggero, a minister in the regional Extramedura government, resigned, after it was found that he had claimed to obtain a marketing certificate from a university that was not presenting this specialization at the time.
A national discussion about political integrity
These successive scandals caused a widespread national debate over political integrity and the need to verify the academic qualifications of officials. “We are still in Spain, we suffer from a chronic disease, Tettolitis, this obsession with the accumulation of certificates that are, often, just an empty decoration,” wrote historian Joaquim Cole in the 20 Minutos newspaper:
