Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)GAUCIN town hall is on the brink of bankruptcy.
Mayor Francisco Ruiz has threatened to close it down if it fails to pay off its pressing debts.
The council needs to stump up for a 50,000 euro tax bill as well as pay some 30 public workers their outstanding social security benefits for June, July and August.
“If the situation doesn’t improve then I will be forced to close the council for good,” explained Ruiz.
“We have already received four rescue packages and we just cannot continue like this.
“If things carry on as they are, we will be faced with exactly the same problem in 2010,” warned Ruiz.
The town hall has an estimated debt of 1.5 million euros and recently asked for a 218,000 euro rescue package.
Furthermore, more than 100 jobless people daily visit the town hall as they desperately seek work.
The town hall has an estimated debt of 1.5 million euros and recently asked for a 218,000 euro rescue package.
Ruiz also criticised the lack of financial support the town hall has received from the Junta and warned of the desperate measures that may soon be implemented.
“If there is no public finance, and they don’t enable us to carry out public works, how am I meant to feed my people?
“At the moment we are slaves of the Junta. We will have to seriously consider introducing ration books to feed our residents who have no income at all.”
However, Ruiz has been slammed by the Socialists as, despite the dire financial situation, he still receives an monthly salary of 2,500 euros.
A quite laughable situation and shows how badly Spain needs a complete redesign of its entire government from the top down. Councils may as well go bankrupt all over – they do sod all for their people! The levels of litter, rubbish, broken pavements, run down buildings, dog excrement and unrepaired road surfaces is the worst I have ever seen.
This is a country and government that is truly void of any ideas. They even make Gordon Brown look competant!
250k? Does he work in a bank?
250,000 euros for the mayor of Gaucin, a town of 1,200 people? Hard to believe, guys. Are you sure it’s not 250,000 pesetas per month (About 1,500 euros per month)? Worth double-checking.
what about Estepona, a friend of mine was to be cremated last week but could not be done there as they have not paid the gas bill, what about Mijas they have just gone bankcrupt
OOPS sorry story not quite out yet, thats why they are demanding money by menaces from the poor people with small campo houses and not the bent constructors…..need i say more
under control… perfectly correct… it was 2500 a month…
editor
doh.
Wow this is a real disgrace!
Would be interesting to know salaries of other Spanish politicians….
Heard Mijas was also broke. Top lad earning in the region of around 8,000 p.m. Could this be so ? Could it truly be that of the 8,000 (?) properties scheduled for demolition no orders have been issued for council workers whose houses may be illegal?
P’raps this is all just silly gossip or perhaps Fred (above) is horribly right. I have a nasty suspicion Fred is horribly right….