This Wednesday, the Ordinary Plenary Session of the Tinajo City Council was held, a session marked by tension and disagreement. From the Tinajo Renewal Movement (MRT) we express our "absolute rejection of the undemocratic methods and the dismissive attitude shown by the mayor, Jesús Machín, towards the members of the opposition".
From the start of the Plenary session, the mayor maintained—according to the MRT— a "despotic, provocative, and disrespectful" demeanor, despite the fact that the group's councilor intervened at all times with a "responsible, institutional, and respectful" tone, as is appropriate in a democratic body.
“We are deeply concerned about the **increasingly nervous and authoritarian attitude** shown by Mr. Machín, who seems to forget that opposition councilors have also been democratically elected by the people of Tinajo. His way of acting responds to a 'with me or against me' logic, as if the only legitimate representatives were those of his own political party,” stated the MRT.
The party believes that Tinajo "does not deserve spectacles unbecoming of a democratic institution" and accuses the mayor of "having turned the City Council into his private fiefdom."
During the session, they also denounced that the book of decrees was not made available to the corporation, as required by law to guarantee transparency and control of municipal management. "In response to our legitimate claim, Machín responded provocatively, even inviting us to go to court, which makes us suspect that he has something to hide," stated the MRT spokesperson, Antonio Morales.
Faced with this situation, the MRT councilors decided to leave the session, making a record of the events before the secretary and the Plenary.
“We have had a lot of patience and we were expecting a change in Mr. Machín’s attitude. But seeing that this will not be possible, we will not continue to allow it. We will take the appropriate measures to defend our rights and ensure the proper use of public money and compliance with the law,” Morales added.
Rejection of the two motions
Likewise, the two motions presented by the MRT were rejected with the votes against from the governing group. The first proposed urging telecommunications and electric power companies to repair the municipality's deteriorated wiring and poles, to improve Tinajo's safety and image. The second requested the mayor to comply with the Transparency Law and guarantee all council members' access to public documentation."The Canary Islands Coalition group backed the mayor's attitudes, making it clear that they share this opaque and authoritarian way of governing," lamented the MRT.Finally, the Tinajo Renovation Movement reaffirmed its commitment to undertake all necessary actions to guarantee the democratic rights of public representatives and prevent the City Council "from continuing to be used as a space for personal and authoritarian power."
