The PSOE of Lanzarote denounces the inactivity of the Inclusion Center during a good part of its first year

The Socialist Group in the Cabildo of Lanzarote has denounced that the so-called Insular Center for Inclusion, located in the facilities of the old Daos school in Puerto del Carmen, has remained inactive for a good part of its first year, despite the fact that the insular institution pays 20,000 euros per month for the rental of the property.

The socialist spokesperson in the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Ariagona González, points out that the cost of the lease, adding IGIC and expenses related to the operation and maintenance of the facilities, "approaches 20,000 euros per month, having paid about 300,000 euros since the beginning of the contract. A considerable amount for a resource that lacks a public, stable, and continuous program aimed at the people and groups for whom it was created."

“Every month, 20,000 euros leave the public coffers to pay for a building that Oswaldo Betancort's Government has been unable to fill with content. They announced it with great fanfare, they spoke of a great insular benchmark, and for months, the facilities have remained without activity and without a real program for vulnerable groups,” denounces González.

The contract establishes that the property was to function as a multipurpose space for comprehensive training, guidance, and labor insertion for vulnerable groups in Lanzarote and La Graciosa. It was also to facilitate the work of social entities and become a meeting point, accompaniment, and development of projects related to inclusion.

“The balance of the first year is a management failure. It is true that the space has been temporarily ceded to different associations, but this cannot be confused with a true public, stable, and participatory program. The insular government announced this center with ambitious objectives, linked to inclusion, care for the disabled, and support for families, and a year later it has still not demonstrated the capacity to turn it into a living, useful resource that meets the real needs of people with disabilities, their families, and other vulnerable groups,” states the socialist spokesperson.

The Cabildo tried to buy the property before renting it

González recalls that the Cabildo initially studied the purchase of the old educational facilities and even commissioned a valuation of the property. The conversations with the owner did not conclude with an agreement and the island government decided to finally resort to renting.

“After failing to reach an agreement to buy the property, they opted to pay a very high rent. That decision required having a solid project, complete planning, and permanent programming ready from day one. They have been paying for months while the building remained practically empty,” she maintains.

The socialist spokesperson questions that the CC and PP government "undertook this important economic commitment without having previously defined the center's operating model, the necessary human resources, the participating entities, and the actions that would be developed in the facilities."

The Socialist Group brought this situation to the last plenary session of the Cabildo de Lanzarote. According to Ariagona González, the responsible councilor "limited himself then to offering a generalist response and, subsequently, in writing, again avoided any concrete explanation about what happened during this first year of the center's operation." “He does not clarify what has been done so far, he does not detail the actions developed in 2025 and he limits himself to announcing what he has reserved to do from now on,” denounces González.