The Government of the Canary Islands has waived 10 million euros of community funds that financed a good part of the masks purchased by the company linked to the Koldo case. This was announced by the Minister of Finance of the Government of the Canary Islands, Matilde Asián, during the press conference she offered after the meeting of the Government Council.
The funds that have been decided to renounce refer to items that were justified by the General Directorate of Budgets and by the General Intervention of the Autonomous Community before the European Union. Currently, these are under study by the legal services of the Canary Islands Government.
To avoid “complications with the European authorities” while the investigation remains open, Asia has signaled the annulment of that item. As the counselor recalled, this decision was made due to the possible irregularities found in the supplies. That is why the autonomous community has decided to assume with its resources the part that it charged to European funds. For the moment, the Government will analyze what measures it can take to recover the money.
These are contracts that were signed by the Canarian Health Service, and that had the approval of the regional Treasury. That is why its certification was submitted to the European Union (EU) to receive the funds, which were advanced by the Canary Islands Community.
According to the files published on the Public Sector Contracting Platform, between March and April 2020 the Government of the Canary Islands purchased health supplies from the company linked to the Koldo case. The total value of these purchases exceeded 12 million euros, a price higher than the market price. In addition, the quality of the material of the masks was inferior to that ordered.
When the European Commission (EC) opened the possibility of the health emergency expenses being charged to community funds, the Executive chaired by Ángel Víctor Torres (PSOE) decided to co-finance them with resources from the European Regional Development Fund.
