The former mayor of Tarragona, Pau Ricomà, affirms that the new socialist executive of Rubén Viñuales has made many promises that have not been executed in the first hundred days of his mandate. “They are like a headless chicken, they say a lot of things, but in the end there is nothing,” he said in an interview with ACN.
Two months ago he left the position of councilor and, now, outside of active politics, he claims the investments achieved to unblock important city projects, such as the Judicial Forum. Although he is no longer part of the municipal group, he assures that the Republicans will not make a “complacent” opposition, but he also does not rule out negotiating the next budgets. He trusts that they will recover the mayor’s office and says that they are “the only” alternative in the current government.
The former mayor says that they came to power “without mortgages” or debts to return four years ago. This, he maintains, is one of the main differences between the Republicans and the current socialist government. “We have been a government, and we still are now, with very little clientelism. We have not intervened as a placement agency for anyone or anything like that,” Ricomà asserts. He also regrets the very tough opposition made by the socialists, especially after the closure of the Inipro case investigation.
He claims his spirit of dialogue and emphasizes that they have the will to make a constructive opposition, despite the fact that, he maintains, they will not be “complacent.” He also insists that they will not create an opposition like that of the PSC “based on generating lies.”
“They went to extremes that are really unacceptable,” he says. Although it is a decision of the municipal group, Ricomà points out that the Republicans will sit down to negotiate the next budgets. “We will go with the best intentions,” he adds.
Ricomà criticizes that one of the first actions of Mayor Viñuales was the decree to withdraw the City Council as a private accusation of Inipro. He calls it “very unethical”: “Above the interests of the political parties there is your city, we remember that Inipro, apart from members of the council, socialists, there is the same socialist party as the accused.” ERC’s response to the decree was to present a contentious-administrative appeal, which was admitted. “This process is still alive,” he notes.
The Inipro case investigates the alleged corruption plot in which 276,157.31 euros were diverted from the Municipal Institute of Social Services of Tarragona (IMSST) to the PSC. Among those investigated is the former socialist mayor Josep Fèlix Ballesteros. “The facts are tremendously serious; we will continue to insist because the interests of the city come first,” said Ricomà.
On the other hand, Ricomà vindicates the management carried out during the four years at the head of the Tarragona council and highlights the investments achieved to unblock the city’s capital projects. As an example, he points out the remodeling of the Residential City – 15 million euros – or the construction of the Justice Forum – 70 million.
“The city of Catalonia, except Barcelona, ??with more than 100,000 inhabitants, that has obtained the most Next Generations is Tarragona. Much more than other municipalities with double the population. Therefore, there has been very important work that will be seen in transformation , in mobility, with infrastructure,” he says.
The last legislature was also marked by the approval of the new garbage contract after two decades without a new tender. In fact, the processing of the contract has been surrounded by controversy, since among others, the tender was void.
The former mayor assures that the modifications made by the Viñuales team are a “makeup operation” and that the changes are minor. “The contact with the garbage, with its costs, with its approach, is what the in-house technicians did, we did it, it is good, it has not changed,” he says.
Likewise, remember that they always ensured the working conditions and rights of the staff. “A story was made that the workers were left in a bad position. Of this, not a single point has been touched; their conditions have been assured, even improved,” he says. Regarding the five companies that, finally, have opted for the tender, Ricomà hopes that the competition will be resolved internally; if its resolution is outsourced, he says, it would “generate a lot of distrust.”
Ricomà affirms that the management of the pandemic and the post-sentence protests were difficult and “convulsive” moments. Now, the IQOXE explosion, with three deaths on January 14, 2020, was one of the “hardest” moments experienced in the city. The Republican considers that the accident marked the breakdown in the relationship of a “certain trust” acquired over the years between citizens and the industry,
He also asserts that the chemical industry has “positive” elements because it generates “stable and highly paid” jobs. “If chemistry disappears, which are things that are sometimes called with great joy, it would be a drama because we would be in a very tough industrial reconversion,” he reflects.
Regarding the tourism model, the Republican believes that the city has to get closer to the model of the municipalities of Altafulla, Torredembarra or Creixell and move away from that of Salou. He assures that it is “very difficult” for Tarragona not to grow touristically so that tourists appreciate that it is a World Heritage Site, that it has “a lot” of popular culture, castles or beaches, among other attractions.
Now, he is concerned about the increase in tourist apartments in the municipality and points out that the situation is at a “worrying point.” For this reason, he demands that the new municipal government apply a one-year moratorium until the special plan to limit them is completed. “Viñuales says that he will make some ordinances, but he does not want to make the moratorium, this worries me because it is much more difficult to reverse,” says Ricomà.
