Operation "Union" is back, ready to give Lanzarote a new lesson. To show the darkest side of the island, but also to become a new wake-up call. And it is that despite the forcefulness of the first and ...
Operation "Union" is back, ready to give Lanzarote a new lesson. To show the darkest side of the island, but also to become a new wake-up call. And it is that despite the forcefulness of the first and second phase of this police and judicial operation, many wanted to continue thinking that nothing was happening here and they would agree with confessed defendants or parties that protect corruption in their ranks, who kept people in their positions in the public administration with positions as relevant as that of the head of the Technical Office of the Arrecife City Council, who has now been arrested again for the second time in the same case and has even been imprisoned provisionally.
On this occasion, most of the investigated events date back to previous legislatures, with which the operation has managed to pull the thread of the alleged historical corruption networks of the island and also find evidence on alleged criminal acts committed years ago. And the worst of all is the little surprise with which the names of some of the detainees have been received, and even the speculations that are made about who the next ones could be, as if half the island was clear about where corruption has passed in Lanzarote.
Therefore, this investigation is even more important in a society that until very recently had been marked by the impunity of many public and business leaders.
With the new arrests, many have once again dusted off the flag of the presumption of innocence, which is undoubtedly a basic right in our society, but which cannot be used as an excuse to evade responsibilities either. And it is that, regardless of the judicial work, political leaders should also act, at least as a precaution. Because citizens also have the right to have institutions free of all stain and all suspicion. And that, obviously, is very far from the current reality.
Justice, with the means that politicians provide them through the institutions that have powers in the matter (Government of Spain and Autonomous Communities), takes time to arrive. And more so in a case like this, in which a large number of plots, subplots and people linked to different fronts of the investigation intersect. Therefore, trying to postpone all decisions until the sentences arrive can be close to recklessness.
Of the fifty or so defendants that there are so far, it is possible that some will eventually be acquitted. But closing your eyes to the evidence that authentic corruption plots have been uncovered is even a lack of respect for Justice and intelligence.
It is not about socially condemning someone or making parallel judgments, but about taking the necessary precautions so that certain behaviors are definitively banished from public institutions. Because what is unsustainable is that every time a contract is signed with a company, a work is awarded or an urban agreement is announced, citizens tremble thinking about what may be behind it.
Therefore, beyond the possible suspensions of membership imposed or voluntary, the essential thing is to know if those who hold public office or are civil servants will remain in their jobs despite everything.
Politicians are obliged to get involved in a situation of such magnitude. Either with forceful measures, or, if they prefer, going out to stand up for the defendants. Because if they are not able to put their hand in the fire for them, they confirm that it is necessary to remove them from their positions.
Furthermore, it is being forgotten that, regardless of whether or not there are criminal acts, there may also be politically unacceptable actions, as this operation has highlighted. But the bar seemed to be so low that no matter how reprehensible a civil servant, a councilor, a minister or a senior official of the Government of the Canary Islands may have, nothing was important enough to remove him from his position and prevent him from continuing to participate in vital decision-making for the institutions, unless he had two or three final judgments behind him. And sometimes, not even then. Let's hope that this time it has served to learn the lesson.
