Sinforiano and Pilar could avoid the eviction, which was already scheduled for March 10. Last Friday, Iveco made an offer to this couple, agreeing that they can continue living in the old houses of the Church, paying one euro per month as rent. Although the proposal was made last Friday, the agreement has not yet been signed, given that the company later introduced other clauses that were not accepted by this elderly couple.
However, the spokesperson for Sinforiano and Pilar, Andrés Medina, says that Iveco has agreed to withdraw them, although they are waiting for them to put it in writing in a new document. This Friday, the company has called the media to a press conference to talk about this issue, although they have not advanced anything about its content.
In the first draft agreement presented by Iveco, it not only spoke of the payment of one euro in rent, but also the obligation to pay for water and electricity and the IBI. In addition, they asked them to sign the agreement before the hearing that was scheduled for this Thursday in the Courts, for the last procedure undertaken by the couple to avoid their eviction.
Regarding that draft, Medina explains that they agreed with the payment of water and electricity bills, since in fact he assures that they have been paying them during all the years they have been in the house. However, they were not willing to take charge of the IBI, "which corresponds to the owner of the house", that is, to Iveco. And they also did not want the hearing this Thursday to be suspended.
"They were told not to rush and wait for the hearing"
"They were told to wait for the hearing, not to be in such a hurry," explains the family's spokesperson. In that hearing, which was finally held this Thursday, the conclusions have been presented within the lawsuit undertaken by Sinforiano and Pilar, after learning a year ago of the existence of a document that was signed when the sale of those houses took place. In that document, the Diocese of the Canary Islands introduced a clause that committed the buyer to allow the people who lived in those houses to remain there while they lived.
However, during the hearing held this Thursday, Iveco has detracted from the validity of that document. Among other things, it has alleged that neither the Diocese nor the couple brandished that document in their day, despite the fact that the company has been in litigation for years trying to recover those homes. In this regard, the defense of Sinforiano and Pilar maintains precisely that that document was hidden from them and they did not know about it until a year ago, when the Diocese finally ended up giving it to them.
This lawsuit, parallel and independent to the eviction, has already been seen for sentencing. In fact, Medina believes that this may be one of the reasons that led the company to offer this agreement to Sinforiano and Pilar, which they had refused until now. Andrés Medina, who is currently also a councilor in the City Council, recalls that within the steps he has taken, a few weeks ago he requested the mediation of the mayor of Arrecife, José Montelongo. The mayor, as he himself confirmed, then met with representatives of the company, who refused to stop the eviction.
However, a few days later it was the company itself that contacted the mayor again, according to Medina, asking him to transfer that proposed agreement to Sinforiano and Pilar. A week later, the agreement has not been signed, but in theory there is a verbal agreement, provided that Iveco withdraws the clauses that it included in the first draft, which could happen this Thursday. Presumably, it will be the company itself that confirms or denies whether it definitively stops the eviction in the press conference that it has called for this Friday.