The judge of Instruction number 9 of Alicante has summoned as investigated the former councilor for Fiestas and Rural Parties, Manuel Jiménez, and the mayor of Infrastructures, José Ramón González, both from the Popular Party, for the case of the contracts for the execution of various works in the departure of La Alcoraya of the Alicante capital. Jiménez submitted his resignation shortly after the matter was revealed and González continues in his position, although he is not part of the candidacy with which the PP contests the elections on Sunday.
The minor works under investigation are the construction of a pergola, the installation of some bio-healthy devices and the reform of the stage of the square. According to the newspaper Información, the judge has also called for the owner of one of the companies that carried out the works to declare on June 16, who presides over the Hoguera to which Manuel Jiménez belongs and had carried out some reform work at home two years ago. In addition, the municipal infrastructure technician who supervised the work carried out in the square has been summoned.
After Jiménez’s resignation, the PSOE filed a complaint in court regarding the possibility that a crime of prevarication had been committed for an alleged splitting of contracts. The complainants consider, and the judge is preparing to investigate, whether the works, executed on the same dates and in the same square, should have been processed jointly and not independently, that is, if the contracts were divided so as not to have to put out the whole of the work to competition.
The explanations given by Jiménez in the municipal plenary session where he announced his resignation, did not convince either the left-wing opposition, which proposed the creation of an investigation commission that was rejected, or Vox, whose representative questioned that Jiménez did not refrain from intervening. in the procedure if it was related to the companies.
The mayor defended his innocence, claimed to be the target of political persecution, but chose to leave for his family: “My family, the most important thing in my life, is experiencing this unfair situation with anguish. I can’t make them go through all this and that moves me to step aside.”
Upon learning of the judge’s decision, the Socialist candidate for mayor, Ana Barceló, has demanded that the mayor appear before the media to give explanations: “Barcala has to stop hiding to answer about the most serious crisis he has suffered the government team that he chairs in this legislature. We no longer accept the silent answer. Jiménez walks with the candidate Barcala campaigning with the PP and what he has to do is sit down with the mayor and, together, offer explanations, ” has secured.
