SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, March 17. (EUROPE PRESS) –
The residents affected by the volcanic eruption of Cumbre Vieja have demanded this Thursday in the Parliament of the Canary Islands more participation in the reconstruction process, more agility in public aid and a provisional access route to the coast of the Aridane Valley.
“No more deception or occultism”, Jennifer Sánchez, president of the Las Manchas neighborhood association, who has spoken on behalf of the groups of La Laguna, La Bombilla, El Remo, Todoque and the businessmen of Puerto Naos.
He has commented that those affected have a “sour feeling” because they cannot actively participate in the design of the reconstruction, without official reports or information, and with a set of aid that “is published and it seems that it does not arrive”.
Sánchez has indicated that “day to day is increasingly unsustainable, with uncertainty and mental chaos” and understands that “bureaucracy must remain in the background”, always complying with the law, to achieve “worthy solutions”.
He lamented that the rental aid has not yet arrived, although there are no free homes either, and he wonders “what the families who have their farms devastated by lava and businesses unable to open will live on and how.” “We want them to put themselves in our place,” she said.
He has demanded that the central government value the properties properly and at their real value and has criticized the fact that the Cabildo de La Palma is going to allocate money from the donations to compensate the people who have lost their first home with an additional 10,000 euros. “It is unfair to those affected who are in critical situations and need them,” she commented.
Regarding the speculation that has begun on the island with the price of rents and lots, he has asked the deputies to legislate to avoid it, just as he has recognized that there may be picaresque among those affected to “take advantage of the situation”, as It happens in politics for example.
GASOLINE BONUSES
Given the detours that drivers must take to leave the affected areas, he has requested the creation of ‘gasoline bonds’ because some families spend up to 400 euros a month on fuel and although he has valued the design of the highway from Puerto Naos to Tazacorte, He maintains that it will take at least a year, for which he has requested a provisional solution and that filling the lava flows be explored to make a road or even a military bridge.
“The coast and Las Manchas are cut off, it is urgent that all possibilities be studied,” he indicated.
He has also said that there are no basic services in the relocated neighborhoods or security guarantees, and with regard to the agricultural estates, he has requested a specific reconstruction plan, set compensation for fair value, non-refundable aid, soft loans, and aid to obtain land for start the ‘sorriba’, recalling the origins of the sector in the Aridane Valley.
Likewise, he has indicated that “solidarity has been brutal” with the affected people and has asked the administrations for “confidence” to be able to believe in the future and accelerate the reconstruction process. “We want to be on the island and a future for all, we love the island,” she said.
Ricardo Fernández (Cs) has confirmed his party’s support for the measures put in place by the central and Canarian governments in order to achieve “political unity” and understands that since the reconstruction of the island “is going to take many years and several legislatures” we have to get the solutions right “and not look for culprits”.
However, he has lamented the lack of effective participation of those affected in the plans and that the aid takes time to arrive.
RECONSTRUCTION WILL “TAKE A LONG TIME”
Melodie Mendoza (ASG) has said that “false hopes” cannot be offered because the reconstruction is going to “take a long time” so she sees it as “essential” that the process be “transparent” and that citizens be informed.
He has said that the aid has to be accelerated “because the days go by” and has taken advantage of his appearance in the commission to “ask for forgiveness” for the mistakes that may have been made, while guaranteeing that they will be “demanding” with the regional Executive .
Francisco Déniz (Yes We Can) has commented that the reconstruction process is “long and hard” because urban planning “is not improvised” although he has said that it is necessary to get “all together” to speed up the processing.
He has recognized errors with the portable desalination plants although they had “good intentions” and has been opposed to macroprojects “sneaking” into the island in order to carry out a rapid reconstruction, such as the road that connects La Zamora with El Remo.
Luis Campos, spokesman for NC, has commented that his party is not going to promise things that cannot be done and indicated that positive things can be obtained from the eruption, such as “unblocking” historical projects on the island and planning for the future
He has supported prefabricated houses as an option given the lack of available housing but has criticized the Executive for the delay in paying rental aid.
Lorena Hernández (PP) has commented that the deputies and the public administrations have “the obligation and the duty” to offer those affected “a life project” and in that sense, she has admitted that the rental aid has to be “more quick”.
He has highlighted the urban decree as a first “emergency” measure and asked to refine the bases of the aid because there are many particular cases that are not covered.
Sergio Rodríguez, who is also mayor of El Paso, has pointed out that the main “priority” is to resolve the lack of housing and urban planning in the Valley, stressing that with the implementation of prefabricated houses “the deadlines have not been met.”
Likewise, he has called for the implementation of a mental health plan for those affected and another aimed at “capturing and retaining” talent to design the future.
CC-PNC QUESTIONS THE “UNCERTAINTY”
His partner, the deputy Lady Barreto, has criticized the “uncertainty” suffered by those affected because there is no reconstruction plan for the island nor is homelessness resolved, at the same time that she requested that the real value of the aid be valued of lost properties.
He has requested the approval of a decree law that collects the rights of those affected and has opposed the Cabildo de La Palma using the money from the donations for the additional 10,000 euros for loss of the first home.
Matilde Fleitas (PSOE) has valued the “solidarity” of the palm society in the face of an evacuation of 7,000 people and, like other parliamentary groups, has recognized that rental aid “comes late”.
He has indicated that his group is going to ensure that “there is no speculation and doing business” with the properties that are under the lava and apologized for the “historical errors” that have been made in the Aridane Valley and are now “paying” .
He has also commented that a “change” cannot be made without citizen participation and although “what those affected have lost cannot be recovered”, the administrations can give “a boost” so that they have a future. “We will be demanding with the Government”, she has pointed out.
