Vilaplana refuses to answer Mazón lunch questions

Maribel Vilaplana refused on May 19 to give Congress new details about the hours she spent with Carlos Mazón on the day of the October 29, 2024 storm in Valencia, saying she had already told a court everything she knew. The journalist, who appeared before the lower house commission investigating the political handling of the disaster, repeatedly referred lawmakers to her earlier testimony before a judge in Catarroja. During the session, she said revisiting the lunch in political questioning would be “an affront to victims” and became emotional as she described the pressure she has faced. RTVE and EFE both reported that she declined to answer substantive questions about the meal and said she had “nothing new” to add. ### Why was Vilaplana in Congress at all? Maribel Vilaplana appeared because lawmakers are trying to reconstruct a crucial stretch of October 29, 2024, when Mazón was at the restaurant El Ventorro while deadly flooding advanced in parts of Valencia. Her account matters because she was with him for several hours during a period that has drawn scrutiny in both political inquiries and the judicial investigation. RTVE reported that Mazón has said he met her to offer her a role at the regional public broadcaster. (rtve.es) The Congress commission is examining the management of the DANA disaster, which killed 230 people, according to the figure cited in coverage of the hearing. Questions about who knew what, and when, have focused in part on Mazón’s timeline that day and on the gap between the lunch and later official actions. (rtve.es) ### What did she actually say about the lunch with Mazón? Vilaplana said she would not go beyond what she had already stated in court in November. RTVE quoted her as saying it had been “a very hard year and a half,” and reported that she argued the facts had not changed since her judicial testimony. EFE said she told lawmakers that, “for responsibility and prudence,” she would not add to what she had already provided in court. (infobae.com) Repeated questions from lawmakers produced the same answer. El País reported that she kept saying, “Me remito a mi declaración,” and “Todo lo que podía aportar lo hice en mi declaración.” During the hearing, she also said she felt judged and described the public reaction after her name became part of the political dispute over the storm response. (rtve.es) ### What is the timeline that lawmakers are trying to pin down? October 29, 2024 is the key date because that was the day of the storm and the lunch at El Ventorro. RTVE reported that Vilaplana told the court in November that Mazón remained in communication throughout the meal but did not show any special urgency about what was already happening in some municipalities. The same report said the lunch extended until 6:45 p.m. and that a parking receipt showed she did not retrieve her car until about an hour later, which she said was because she was working on her computer in the vehicle. (elpais.com) Those details have become central because they help define Mazón’s whereabouts during a period that investigators and lawmakers are comparing with emergency decisions and public warnings. RTVE said the hours they spent together have fueled speculation and shaped questioning in both political and judicial forums. ### Did Vilaplana say she had been pressured? (rtve.es) Vilaplana said in Congress that she had not been coerced or threatened. RTVE reported that she said she had never held political office and had collaborated at all times. Other coverage of the hearing said she also denied being used by the Valencian government or pressured by the Partido Popular. (rtve.es) Her most emotional comments were about the aftermath. El País reported that she said, “Es muy difícil salir a la calle y no derrumbarte,” while EFE said she lamented the “relatos e insinuaciones” that followed the lunch. Those remarks framed her insistence that she was not the political decision-maker under scrutiny. (rtve.es) ### What happens next in the inquiry? The Congress commission is continuing to gather testimony about the handling of the October 29, 2024 disaster, with Mazón’s movements and communications still a central line of questioning. Vilaplana’s appearance did not resolve that issue, because she stuck to her judicial account and declined to elaborate on the lunch beyond what is already in the court record. (elpais.com) Any further factual development is likely to come from the judicial case in Catarroja, from additional commission hearings, or from records used to test the timeline of that afternoon. For now, the most detailed account attributed to Vilaplana remains the testimony she gave as a witness in November and reaffirmed before Congress on May 19, 2026. (rtve.es)