Top Spanish general resigns over vaccination queue-jumping allegations

Spain’s top general resigned on Saturday after allegations that he had received the Covid-19 vaccine ahead of priority groups.

General Miguel Angel Villaroya was among the public officials who had sparked public anger because of reports that they had jumped the vaccination queue.

Defence Minister Margarita Robles had asked General 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 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,” the statement read.

It added that Villaroya “took decisions which he thought to be correct” but which “damaged the public image of the Armed Forces”.

At the start of the pandemic, Villaroya represented the military at media daily briefings where he detailed how troops were cleaning care homes and caring for elderly residents.

Nationwide infection rates have soared since late December, with 42,885 new cases added to the tally on Friday, bringing the total cases to 2,499,560 and a total death toll of 55,441.

Olajumoke Adeleke