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The municipal training has recorded several allegations, which has also been transmitted to the Ombudsman, considering that the City has failed to comply with the participatory process that the Plenary approved that should exist for the drafting of this draft.
Murcia now also estimates that the draft fails to comply with basic aspects, such as establishing that water is an essential human right
"Murcia will continue to have the most expensive water in Spain, since it defends above all the economic benefit of the private part, Hidrogea / Agbar"
NOW MURCIA has taken to the Ombudsman the Water and Sanitation Tariff Ordinance, as well as its elaboration procedure, since both have incurred serious irregularities.
This is what Councilor Miguel Ángel Alzamora said today, the day after the deadline established by the City Council for submitting allegations to the draft Ordinance.
The municipal training has registered several allegations, which has also been transmitted to the Ombudsman, considering that the City Council has failed to comply with the participatory process that the Plenary by motion of Now Murcia-approved that should exist for the drafting of this draft.
Now Murcia also estimates that the draft does not comply with basic aspects, such as expressly establishing that water is an essential human right, setting, among other things, that water cuts can not occur due to non-payment to families in situations of economic vulnerability.
It also calls for the creation of tariff bodies to encourage citizen participation, and is reported that with these rates "Murcia will still have the most expensive water in Spain, as it defends above all the economic benefit of the private part , Hydrogea / Agbar. "
Alzamora denounces the "false participatory process" that the City Council has carried out for this draft of the Water Tariff Ordinance.
"Our motion of last June, approved unanimously, established that it should be elaborated with various institutional actors and professional and citizen organizations that work on water management." However, far from holding meetings with these actors and to duly inform all organizations and civil groups in the social and water fields, what the municipal government of the PP has done is an 11-day consultation through a website, with hardly any publicity or information, and without prior debate on the reports that have led to its elaboration ".
The councilor notes that "most social and environmental organizations that are related to the City Council and that we have consulted these days, had not been informed of the open procedure, which corroborates that the 'participatory process' has been more than insufficient, and that it can not be described as participatory, democratic, or transparent. "
Remember Alzamora that on the participation page of the city of Murcia, although it is made to article 133 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, of the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations, it has omitted from this the references to "may also be directly sought the opinion of organizations or associations recognized by law that group or represent people whose rights or legitimate interests are affected," or to issue an informed opinion "should be made available the necessary documents," something that has not been done.
Regarding the qualification of water as an essential human right, Alzamora stresses that "although it is something widely reflected in the international Treaties and Conventions of which the Kingdom of Spain is a part, it is not expressly contemplated in the draft of the Ordinance, with which the right is not guaranteed ".
This is something that many Spanish cities are already doing, as the Andalusian Ombudsman points out: "In the exercise of this competence (municipal), many entities are echoing the recognition of a human right to water and expressly mentioning the guarantee of a minimum supply for the attention of basic necessities in the corresponding local ordinances of regulation of the service or of approval of tariffs ".
"The Ordinance," says the mayor of Ahora Murcia, "should ensure regular supply, with the necessary measures for the full exercise of the right to water by citizens and, especially, the most socially and economically disadvantaged "
For Alzamora, "the proposed Ordinance and related service regulations contravene a fundamental right that is enshrined at the highest legal level in the international pacts of which Spain is a party." Depriving a household of water services violates the International Covenant on Rights Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which is unacceptable. "
The councilor states that "the impossibility of producing water cuts in the municipality must be reflected in the Ordinance and related regulations."
Thus, "the collection of the patrimonial benefit of a non-taxable public nature and the reception of the service are independent, as is the case with other municipal services such as the collection of solid urban waste." Families that stop paying the corresponding rate for the collection of urban solid waste do not lack the service, why is it reasoned differently with water? ".
Alzamora stresses that "from Now Murcia we do not come to urge that the water service be provided free of charge, but we propose to avoid the defaults that have been motivating the supply cuts, with the measures and programs that are chosen, but always being reflected in the norm that we have to give among all ".
The allegations of Now Murcia propose, in addition, "the creation of bodies (commission, table) of tariffs, duly regulated in the ordinance and / or related regulations, which will have as mission to promote citizen participation in public affairs and know the operation of the service (for example, service exploitation accounts) ".
Finally, it is proposed that the motion approved unanimously be executed in the plenary session of the City of Murcia and the ordinance be drawn up based on a broad and democratic participatory process, which has sufficient time for debate and informed decision-making, and that includes organizations and associations interested and / or affected by civil society.
Source: Ahora Murcia
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