Portal de Totana
www.portaldetotana.com
"The participation of the last ten years has moved between 10,000 and 14,000 people and this year the average has been met, even on the Saturday."
As an Independent Councilor since May, I am only moved to write on this subject the interest to give voice, not to represent, a group that nobody has wanted to give it clearly at the time from local politics and at the same time, try to clarify some questions.
The change of date of this year of the rise of our local Patron from traditional day 7 to Saturday, January 13, pursued for some members of the Board of La Santa from its origin which had more influx of people.
It was necessary to wait for a certain opinion to give the corresponding "official" figures from the responsible parties most directly involved in the acts.
THE RISING ROMERY OF 2018 HAS HAD A NORMAL AFFLUENCE.
D. Rafael Hostench, steward of the La Santa Foundation, last Monday in La Verdad , estimated attendance at about 12,000 people.
Our Mayor in about 20,000 people and according to the Councilman celebrations in statements to Totana.com , in just over 10,000 people.
According to data of the Local Police of the last ten years, it could be deduced that the change of the date has not, unfortunately, achieved the objective that it pursued:
2017 Saturday, about 12,000 people.
2016 Thursday, over 10,000 people.
2015 Friday, over 13,000 people.
2014 Thursday over 14,000 people.
2013 Tuesday, about 13,000 people.
2012 Saturday over 20,000 people.
2011 Friday over 12,000 people.
2010 Thursday over 13,000 people.
2009 Wednesday about 10,000 people.
2008 Monday over 10,000 people.
The participation of the last ten years has moved between 10,000 and 14,000 people and this year the average has also been met even if it was on Saturday.
In 2012 someone is wrong to provide the figure, otherwise would have to analyze very much the causes of this large increase in assistance.
But within that good intention of change, there have also been changes of positions on their permanence or not for future years.
This has been the true background of the controversy generated in this regard.
In the interview last December on a local television Mr. Francisco Miras, current treasurer of the Board, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34zpF-udL-w , makes clear the position of some members of the Board , and is that the traditions of the dates could be considered secondary if it is necessary to put them before the influx of pilgrims.
CHANGE OF DATE ONLY FOR 2018 OR FOR YEARS TO COME ALSO?
On the same day, January 7, 2017 Mr. Miras was already betting on this change to try to improve the influx of people and encouraged local politicians on his Facebook so that they had the courage to carry it out.
But that is not the responsibility of the Patronato Mr. Miras ?.
To this end, the day after the pilgrimage of 2017 promotes a Neighborhood Platform called "People's Square" and opens a campaign to collect signatures on Change.org so that the Pilgrimage to rise is always the first Saturday after the day of Reyes Bliss. The initiative manages to gather 191 signatures during the time it is active in Change .
In the plenary session of April 2017 with the votes in favor of Partido Popular and Ganar Totana, and the abstention of the Socialist Party, -the Councilor for Citizens had already resigned-, this proposed change of date was approved by an absolute majority. can be changed in the regional local festivities calendar.
The same Mr. Francisco Miras two days before the date of the pilgrimage of this year said he was in favor of such a consultation but that he would remain on the sidelines.
He also insists on the same local COPE radio program that the change is "PUNCTUAL AND ONLY FOR THIS YEAR".
So what is the point of asking nothing at this point to the totaneros ?.
All this process of changing the date has been very "democratic" as he himself states.
When something has become clear, it is the decision of the Pastor and no one else.
Nothing to object to on my part.
THE LABOR AND COMMERCIAL DAMAGE THAT WOULD GENERATE THIS CHANGE OF PERMANENT DATE AT A GENERAL LEVEL
Although Saturday for legal purposes is always a day considered workable.
In cases such as officials, bank workers, consultants, factories and ultimately all those who are not self-employed, where the local business also paints a lot, their collective bargaining labor has made Saturday to be considered non-work at the national level.
A large number of workers inside and outside Totana, have been harmed by subtracting a day off work (festive), which could have corresponded to have the competition to mark the local festivities themselves City Councils.
Today they are the least those who work on Saturdays, and those, in no case would their day of rest be harmed if the day of the week in which a local holiday is decided falls between Monday and Friday.
If this national standard has not been taken into account when studying the change of dates by the City Council.
Yes, he has had it to compensate his officials with one more day of rest.
A clear example of festive dates in favor of workers is taken by the neighboring City Council of Alhama de Murcia, which last year fell on the day of its patron on Saturday, October 7 (Virgen del Rosario), made the decision to pass the holiday to Friday, and this year, which falls on October 7, Sunday, has gone to day 5, Friday.
Although the labor standard advises to spend a holiday that falls on Sunday the following Monday.
A PAST POPULAR CONSULTATION LA ROMERIA WITH WHAT INTENTIONS?
The controversy that is growing during the summer of 2017 and reflected in social networks.
The Celebrations Councilman released a statement on 08/30/17 to clarify that this change is "PUNCTUAL WAY" and only for 2018 and still publicly states that it will propose a popular consultation on the matter with several options for future years that still continues pending ( see news on Totana.com ).
It can be deduced that at that moment, there is a "slight" confusion between what was declared by the Celebration Councilor and the treasurer of the Board in relation to whether the change was going to be permanent.
And more people too.
For what are then proposed popular consultations from the Board on 07/10/17 in their statement , where they insist that the change is "ONLY AND ONLY FOR THE YEAR 2018", and in point 5 say they say: " At the same meeting on September 13, the Board of Trustees of the Foundation of La Santa de Totana values, to initiate a participatory process to be held in the coming months, so that the affected people can freely express their position regarding future transfers. Participatory process, consultative and non-binding, which is pending to be defined in its proposals and implementation, and for which the opinions of the founding entities, the Bishopric of Cartagena and the Totana City Council, would be counted. ".
Popular consultations, or popular suffrages, in constitutional law and constitutional history, are public deliberations taken by the world as an electoral body and body of legislation, not by entities or associations or by the local Corporation.
In any case, what the Board of Trustees proposes in its statement, would be to RECONSIDER the decision already made between the bodies involved.
The Town Hall is something else.
This Councilman was the first to propose at the end of August on his Facebook a popular consultation but for BEFORE JANUARY 7, 2018, because it was already well known that the final intention of some members of the Board seemed to be to change the date with permanent character
Then the following day the Councilman of festivities of IU followed from the social networks, then the Board, the PSOE and finally C, s Totana by that strict order of dates and each with a different option.
Why did not the political parties PROPOSE this popular consultation from the start and before voting anything in the April 2017 plenary session?
Well, because the social controversy was increasing months later.
If there have been 2 or 3 people promoting this decision to change the date from a local association, Adsyse (association for the defense of the sanctuary of the Saint of Totana), they are still the same number of people, more or less, those that on the other hand have decided to promote the change of date with the desire to make that day bigger.
But there are thousands of opponents to the change of this date that have manifested in the collection of more than 3,000 signatures by this local association.
This local association (Adsyse), got in touch with all the political groups including this independent Councilman, which I thank you, between the months of September and October.
I decide then to draft a motion for the plenary session of October that did not pass even the informative commissions ( see press release ) proposing two things;
that the Board RECONSIDER the date change to be half formed by the same political parties or ratified in the decision already taken before the controversy.
Since there was plenty of time to vary in the calendar of local festivities if that were the case.
I confirmed by phone call to the Autonomous Community that it was still possible.
I also had a pleasant talk with the current Parish Priest of Santiago El Mayor, whom I take the opportunity to greet and thank him for the time he dedicated to me.
He expressed his opinion on the matter and was aware of the intention he was pursuing when presenting the motion.
Which he thought was very correct and respectable.
It must be remembered, once again, that the current parish priest is not the one proposing the changes of dates either, since when they are approved in the full April 2017, the current Pater was not yet destined to this Parish.
THE POLITICAL PARTIES, THE PATRONATE AND DEMOCRACY
The legitimacy of the Board to make this decision is indisputable as has already been said, but not because it is democratic or because there are representatives of political parties within it as I have seen in some forums and other media these past days, since it is the Parish Priest of Santiago is exclusively because it is a religious act that makes the decision with the "advice" of the rest of the members of the Board.
The Municipal Corporation only makes this decision fully to move to the annual calendar of local festivities in the Region.
The church is not a democratic organization.
It would not have lasted more than 2,000 years if it were, and it is not a derogatory criticism, it is that way.
The Church is a hierarchical organization like our armed forces or our police.
The "representatives" of the town of Totana that make up the Board, should not be.
Nor mix politics with religion as our Constitution says in this case.
There is something in democracy called Church and State separation.
It comes in our Constitution and it is not fulfilled.
Nothing new, either.
What communist, socialist or whatever parties are part of religious organizations is an authentic political aberration over our system that only interferes and confuses the objectives of these organizations.
As much should be part of the Mayor on an honorary title, with voice but even without vote because it is reasonable to have within the power the Church and the rest of members be elected for their devotion, work, personal merits, etc ..., or as well estimate your permanent directive.
The City Council of Totana names three people representing each of "the three candidates" who have "greater support" in the municipal elections, according to the statutes of the Board.
As this division of positions do not expect to change in the coming years.
What I would humbly recommend, is that they should adapt to the times that their statutes run and vary that of "the three candidacies" since they are leaving aside other political parties in Totana that also "represent" the totaneros who They have voted.
As it is the case of the recent appearance of Citizens, that has not got to have member in the Board.
I suppose that who drafted the statutes of the Board at that time, referred to "three parties" because there were no more present, nor were expected.
Another explanation has no "democratic" meaning.
THREATS AND INSULTS OF LAST MINUTE
On the subject of the "threats" of setting fire to the mountain or the Sanctuary that Mr. Miras commented on in COPE in such a dramatic way and the "vandalism acts", knowing what happened and where those comments come from.
Well, we would only have to laugh together and be more than calm.
But before saying so in a public environment should advise better and not cause unnecessary insecurity in the citizens days before the pilgrimage.
We are all in Totana waiting for this "popular consultation" within this quarter that I doubt will come to produce and which case to occur, it will not help either.
The Independent Councilor
D. Juan C. Carrillo Ruiz.
Source: Juan C. Carrillo / Foto: Totana.com
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