The local government of Balaguer is facing a delicate economic situation after losing almost 328,000 euros in aid intended for municipal projects. Added to this figure are nearly 13,000 euros in late interest, which the city council has had to bear for not executing the subsidies within the established deadlines.
Among the actions affected by this loss of funding are the illumination of Castell Formós, with 86,400 euros lost and 3,229 euros in interest, and the Muralla del Firal, which has resulted in a loss of 104,192 euros in aid and 7,214 euros in interest. Other projects such as the Filades de la Muralla (35,629 euros), the Heritage Catalog (42,876 euros), and the APEU of Polígon Campllong (9,750 euros) have also been affected, in addition to improvements in the accessibility of the Municipal Theater and the elevator of the Library.
“"The lack of foresight has ended up taking its toll on public coffers."
From the municipal group of ERC, a "reactive management" has been denounced by the PSC government, attributing the situation to administrative paralysis and a lack of foresight. According to the party's spokesperson, it is "unacceptable" for citizens to bear these penalties, and it has been suggested that part of the losses could have been avoided with credit modifications and greater coordination between the different municipal areas.
For her part, the head of Balaguer's Paeria has acknowledged the lack of control in areas such as Culture and Urban Planning, which prevented timely notification of delays. She has reported that weekly meetings have been established with technicians and area managers to carry out a more exhaustive monitoring of projects and prevent similar situations from recurring in the future. The objective is to communicate any impediment in the execution of projects in a timely manner to avoid renunciations and penalties that affect public funds.
