The government pact between the Popular Party and the Canarian Coalition in the Arrecife City Council has determined that David Toledo, number six on the Canarian Coalition list in the 2019 elections, will be the new deputy mayor of the capital. Toledo affirms that the head of the list, Echedey Eugenio, has not occupied the position due to his “commitment to Education”, thus referring to his work as a part-time professor. “We cannot play with that, because education is also politics and they deserve to finish the course,” Toledo stated on Radio Lanzarote - Onda Cero, thus dissociating that decision from a possible demand from the PP to close the pact.
David Toledo has also denied that his party is already betting on him as its next candidate in Arrecife, delegating to him the main areas that CC will hold in the capital. In this regard, he has assured that he will "raise his hand" in the Local Committee so that Echedey Eugenio repeats as a candidate for Mayor.
Toledo has assured that the negotiation between the Popular Party and the Canarian Coalition “was not difficult”, and that when two formations sit down to govern “none should come out winning”, but rather there should be “a balance”. “When one tries to trample another in a negotiation, it does not go forward,” said the deputy mayor, who defends that the Canarian Coalition has councilorships “that are not of a lower rank.”
In this regard, he maintains that his political formation holds “a fundamental area” such as the Local Police, as well as Festivities, which he has assured is “another of the negative notes” of the management that has been carried out, with the celebration of the Carnivals or “of the last San Ginés festivities.” “We have areas such as Culture, Festivities and Sports, and what's more, now we are going to prepare the 2022 budget,” Toledo claimed, emphasizing that they have good areas “to manage.”
“There are many things to do in Arrecife”
In relation to his new position, Toledo has stated that on a personal level it means “an honor and a responsibility”, and adds that it is a challenge that he assumes “with humility”. “There are many things to do in Arrecife, even though we have 17 months left, but the imprint and seal of the nationalist group will be noticed,” Toledo pointed out.
The nationalist, who will hold public office for the first time, has described Arrecife as a city that has “a projection to be the most beautiful capital of the Canary Islands”, although he adds that there have been “many years of neglect and disastrous management in numerous areas of the Arrecife City Council”. This situation, according to Toledo, has generated that the neighborhoods are “old and ugly”, and that they come to the Administration wanting to “put things in order”.
“You must not give up in the attempt, you must have strength and desire, and the necessary motivation to try to change things. That is what politics is about, having the vocation and ambition to improve the city”, added Toledo.
In addition to the Deputy Mayor's Office, David Toledo will direct the Heritage area, as well as Parks and Gardens. The nationalist acknowledges that he asked his colleagues “that he would like to take Heritage”, with the aim of changing the image of the capital. Toledo has stated that this is not only a matter for the City Council itself, but also for the “citizens themselves”, who he has assured have been impregnated “with the very pessimism” of the current situation of the city. “We have to put our shoulder to the wheel and get things done”, he stated.
The Argana Pavilion, one of David Toledo's “challenges”
The Argana Alta Pavilion has been closed since 2013, with numerous damages and garbage in its surroundings. David Toledo, a resident of the neighborhood, affirms that the new government group is going to “try” to open the facility, although he does not commit “100%”, since he has acknowledged that he does not know “what the situation is like”.
“We had a teleclub there and they took it away from us. We had a pavilion, they opened it and closed it. We are going to put all the strength in the world into trying to open it”, he stated.
In addition, the new deputy mayor has added that another of the “challenges” that his party proposes is to “move forward with the Argana Alta Health Center”, since he considers that the neighborhood needs it, because “almost 10,000 people” live in it.
Canarian Coalition “creates” the Department of Events
One of the novelties in the distribution of areas of the new government composed of the Canarian Coalition and the Popular Party is the creation of the Department of Events, which will be directed by the nationalist Maciot Cabrera.
The deputy mayor has explained that it will be based “not only on festivities”, but on other types of specialties such as “technological events”. “Arrecife has to modernize in r+d+i, in ‘LAN party’ events, in merging with new technologies and in having another face of modernity that it does not have today”, David Toledo pointed out.
This councilorship, created according to Toledo by the Canarian Coalition, seeks to “turn Arrecife around”, and has been carried out because the nationalist group “has studied other municipalities”, in which this type of events are held, such as Santa Cruz de Tenerife