By Graham Keeley
INTERNATIONAL – Spain’s top general resigned on Saturday after allegations he had received the Covid-19 vaccine ahead of priority groups, one of a number of public officials who have sparked public anger because of reports they have jumped the vaccination queue.
Defence Minister Margarita Robles had asked General Miguel Angel Villaroya, chief of defence staff, for explanations after media reports on Friday that he had received the vaccination.
In a statement on his resignation, the defence ministry indicated but did not explicitly state that Villaroya had had the vaccination. The general “never intended to take advantage of unjustifiable privileges which damaged the image of the Armed Forces and put in doubt the honour of the general,” it said.
It added that Villaroya “took decisions which he thought to be correct” but which “damaged the public image of the Armed Forces”.
