Spanish corrupt Prime Minister Rajoy’s downfall soon?

This video says about itself:

Spain: Podemos announce motion of no-confidence against Rajoy’s ‘corrupt’ government

27 April 2017

Secretary General of the Podemos Party Pablo Iglesias, accompanied by other leaders of the Unidos Podemos coalition announced their intention to launch a no-confidence motion against the government of the Popular Party in Madrid, Thursday.

Pablo Iglesias, Secretary General of Podemos (Spanish): “We think that the necessity to force the Popular Party out of the government is a wide and growing social demand and also is a civic and ethical obligation for us. Because of this, I announce that we have started meeting and discussions to start a no-confidence motion against the Popular Party. The no-confidence motion is the parliamentary tool that will allow us to push the Popular Party out of the government and will allow us to present an alternative.”

Irene Montero, Spokesperson of Unidos Podemos in the congress (Spanish): “We are going to ask to the political forces that nowadays are supporting the government, the Socialist Party and Ciudadanos, to stop supporting and helping the Popular Party government and joining these meeting and discussions with the civil organisations and other political forces to articulate and present this no-confidence motion.”

Alberto Garzon, Secretary General of United Left (Spanish): “Our country lives under the threat of the democracy being parasited by the Popular Party, but we have an alternative, and we hope this no-confidence motion goes ahead, to defend democracy and to put the Popular Party out of the government because this country can not stand anymore the corruption of the Popular Party.”

That was a year ago. And now …

Reuters news agency reports today:

Socialist chief Pedro Sanchez set to become Spain’s Prime Minister

by Julien Toyer

MADRID – Pedro Sanchez was almost certain to become Spain’s new Prime Minister after his socialist party on Thursday secured enough votes to topple Mariano Rajoy in a confidence vote over a corruption case.

Sanchez has received the backing of six parties totalling 180 votes in parliament to become prime minister, more than the absolute majority of 176 votes needed to take power immediately if the no-confidence vote is held on Friday as scheduled.

Rajoy’s departure would trigger a second political crisis in southern Europe, further unnerving financial markets already wrongfooted by failed attempts to form a government in Italy three months after a national election. …

Spain’s blue-chip index Ibex closed down 1 percent on Thursday but the news of Rajoy’s likely downfall did not trigger a major sell-off and Spanish stocks were also hit by the trade war the U.S. started with Europe and other allies. …

Shortly before he secured the key support of the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), Sanchez had told Rajoy it was still time to leave and avoid the humiliation of becoming the first Spanish prime minister to lose a no-confidence vote.

“Are you ready to resign? Resign today and leave by your own will,” Sanchez told Rajoy. “You are part of the past, of a chapter the country is about to close.”

The Basque PNV had backed Rajoy’s budget as recently as last week but it decided to remove its support after dozens of people linked to the ruling People’s Party (PP) were sentenced to decades in prison in a long-running corruption trial.

Sanchez said that if he took power he would stick to the budget approved by Rajoy, and would also seek to start a new dialogue with the restive region of Catalonia. …

Two Catalan pro-independence parties as well as leftist Podemos, a relative newcomer, another small Basque group and a party from the Canary Islands have said they will back Sanchez.

Jose Luis Abalos, the member of parliament in charge of formally presenting the motion on behalf of the Socialists, told PP deputies that the court ruling had triggered a wave of indignation across the country.

“While families were suffering the crisis, you were becoming millionaires”, he told PP members in parliament.

Rajoy, whose minority government has struggled after two inconclusive elections in 2015 and 2016 ushered in the most fragmented parliament since democracy returned to Spain in the 1970s, is also coming under fire for a perceived inability to solve a secession crisis in Catalonia.

See also here.