Diario de Notices/Efe. | The Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife has deferred the trial of the former Festival Councillor of the capital’s City Council, Andrés Martín (PSOE), until February 18, as three of the summoned witnesses failed to appear yesterday. The current socialist councillor in opposition, as he remains in this term, faces allegations of administrative prevarication regarding the minor contracts utilised during the 2020 carnivals, for which the Prosecutor’s Office has requested a 12-year disqualification.
However, the officials who did provide testimony at the hearing contradicted each other concerning the legality of the minor contracts employed by the defendant for the festivities four years ago, while Patricia Hernández held office.
During the hearing, the then secretary of the city council, Luis Prieto, stated that, given the circumstances, it was entirely legal to resort to this type of tender, with a limit set at €15,000. He noted that, in October 2019, the requirements were drafted collaboratively, but following an appeal against the award filed in December, minor contracting had to be pursued, an option that was lawful and, in fact, was “the only possibility” available at that time.
The auditor mentioned that, after the carnivals, she was asked to prepare a report and she simply reviewed the numerous invoices submitted to her; hence she assumed that the entire process had been conducted correctly, just like in previous years, and that any irregularities would have been flagged.
A technician from the Autonomous Organisation of Festivals at that time indicated that they were instructed to work overtime, even on Sundays, to complete the files because the accused councillor had personally requested urgent action. Thus, he believes that if minor contracts had not been employed, it would have been impossible to host events like the Carnival in the street and added that there was a consultation with the city council’s legal department, which endorsed the chosen approach. The awards were signed by the councillor, and the criterion applied was to select the most economical offer.
A municipal architect confirmed that no one alerted them to potential illegality and, concerning the removal of the cost of the stage ceilings from the specifications to avoid exceeding the limit of these contracts, he explained that these elements vary depending on the prominence of the selected artist. Regarding the hiring of barriers, he affirmed that it was a safety issue to prevent the public from “getting under the floats,” as had apparently occurred in previous instances.
Among those who disagreed with this narrative is the former senior official, who, at the instruction of the mayor, José Manuel Bermúdez (CC), who succeeded Patricia Hernández (PSOE) in office, prepared a confidential report that emphatically stated that it was not feasible to conduct the procedures in that manner. A lawyer from the council stated similarly, who, in 2023, reviewed that file and observed indications of criminal activity, leading to the case being presented to the Prosecutor’s Office again.
An advisor to the Department of Culture, whose son unsuccessfully contested this tender, highlighted that he submitted a complaint, which was filed, criticising that the councillor advised against hiring his son’s company due to claims of it being “mafia”.
