ESTEPONA: MONEY DOWN THE ANDORRA DRAIN

I have to file nine main news reports for the newspaper each week on the area from Fuengirola to Manilva and inland to Ronda. That is no problem – there is plenty of news about. What is a problem is that there are so many town hall corruption reports on Marbella and Estepona alone - largely in the Malaya and Astapa cases - that many weeks they could take up my full quota.

In recent months I have written many a report of the trials and tribulations of Estepona’s town hall and how that affects the residents. Schools have had no toilet paper or bleach. The fire brigade has most of its vehicles off the road as the town hall can’t afford to repair them. Municipal offices have had their phones and internet links cut off. The local police have had no fuel for their patrol cars. And so on because Estepona is bust.

Given that scenario I suspect the residents of Estepona, some of whom read this page, will be delighted to learn that over ten million euros of what they might consider as their money is sitting in a bank account in Andorra.

The funds are said to be those of the former director of town planning in Estepona between 2003 and 2007, Pedro López. It was hidden in accounts in the name of his family. According to the National Police the money comes from constructors who paid “commissions” to the town hall in order to have building licences granted. The accounts have now been blocked by the Andorra authorities.

Ironically López appeared before the Estepona court investigating the ‘Astapa’ town planning corruption case on Monday. The purpose of his visit was to enlarge on the testimony he gave on first being arrested on June 17, 2008. It would be interesting to know if he commented on the discovery of the Andorra funds. For now we will not know as judge Jesús Torres is maintaining the secrecy clamp down so we will have to wait to the case finally comes to trial.

There is a backlog of corruption cases waiting to be heard in the Málaga provincial court. First up is Ballena Blanca, then Malaya this April or May – the latter being the biggest corruption case in Spain’s history, which is saying something. So Astapa will have to wait its turn – but for the people of Estepona seeking justice for their embattled town that day cannot come soon enough.

A DOG TURD POINTS THE WAY

With the autumn rains fast approaching Spain’s specialist fire teams of Infoca could be excused for slapping themselves on the back after another summer without any major blazes in Málaga province. Then the Estepona fire struck and destroyed more land than has been burnt in wild fires in the province in the last three years.

The fire started in the area of the San Isidro Labrador municipal park in Estepona last Wednesday and quickly spread thanks to the strong winds in the direction of Casares. It was not till Friday that Infoca declared the fire was fully controlled although operatives stayed on duty to ensure there were no flare ups.

Initial estimates suggested the fire had burned 600 hectares of scrub and tree covered hillside but that was later revised down to 520 hectares. The over calculation is easy to explain because of the difficult terrain, the same problem that hindered fire teams in tackling the flames.

In the last three years around 500 hectares has been burnt in wild fires in Málaga province so the Estepona fire exceeded that large area. It was also the third worst fire in the last decade after Cortes de la Frontera in 2006 which destroyed 660 hectares and Mijas in 2001 which burnt 1,100 hectares.

The Brigada de Investigación is working on the theory that the fire was started deliberately in the San Isidro Labrador park after receiving information from a worker who saw somebody leaving the area hurriedly just before the blaze took hold. On visiting the scene it is plain to see how the fire started near the shrine and then took off with the wind towards Casares.

There were major concerns that the inferno would damage historical and valuable environmental sites in the fire’s path. The 5,000 year old Megalithic Necropolis at Corominas in Estepona has not suffered structural damage from the flames and fire fighters were on standby to protect the Monte del Duque, an area of high ecological value in Casares, but the inferno passed it by.

Now what has this got to do with a dog turd I hear you cry?

Well as I walked across the burnt out land I happened upon said turd. It was not a common style doggie doo but shaped so that it had a finger like protrusion pointing towards heaven. It had survived the raging inferno, was certainly baked but now held firm. A sign surely that whilst devastation may be all around us we can still cock our leg at life.

Is he barking mad?

Woof, I reply!

Stop Press: on Thursday it was announced that an Estepona woman had been arrested on suspicion of starting the fire. Police tracked her down after acting on information supplied by eye witnesses. She has appeared in court and been released on bail as the judge did not believe she would flee. The mayors of Estepona and Casares have stated they will demand the full weight of the law is brought to bare on any person convicted.

THE TOTNES POUND COMES TO ESTEPONA

Totnes was the first transition town in the UK having started three years ago. Hence it was appropriate that Guy Chapman from that group should travel to Estepona to give a talk on Monday night to the Ciudad de Transición Estepona (CTE) – the first such group in Spain.

Regular readers of my blog will know the transition town movement was started in Ireland but now over 100 Transition Communities in UK have followed Totnes lead with this group probably being the most advanced. Most of the initiatives that are under way are relevant to the economy of Estepona as like Totnes it is a coastal tourist resort.

CTE organiser James Machin told me: “High on the priority list is energy usage, and much effort is being expended on this issue. Guy explained how Totnes undertakes Oil Vulnerability Auditing, an innovative approach that helps small local businesses to assess and quantify their risk from rising/fluctuating oil prices, then understand potential solutions and take timely action. There’s also a solar water heating initiative underway that involves the bulk purchase of systems on behalf of participants, resulting in a significant reduction in cost.”

With the currency markets in turmoil it was perhaps appropriate that Guy took from his pocket a ‘Totnes pound’. The ‘Totnes Pound’ is the ‘local’ currency that was launched in March 2007. ‘Economic Localisation’ is considered to be a key aspect of the transition process, and local currency systems provide the opportunity to strengthen the local economy whilst preventing money from leaking out. They have also received an unforeseen bonus, in that the ‘Totnes Pound’ has become a tourist attraction, with visitors buying the pounds and taking them home as souvenirs. Businesses can also assess their supply chains to see how they can buy locally and thus support the resilience of the local economy.

Another part of the Totnes experience that is of keen interest to Estepona is the Food Group. James explained: “it is working to strengthen the resilience of Totnes and the surrounding district in the area of food. They work closely with the farming and business community to develop a re-localised food infrastructure as well as encouraging individuals and communities to grow their own food. One scheme that is proving to be highly successful is the ‘Garden Share Project’. The Project matches keen, enthusiastic and committed gardeners and local garden owners who want to see their gardens being used more productively.”

Guy Chapman added: “A core theme is for a community to come together around the challenges of Climate Change and Peak Oil (world oil production capacity declining). The full implications of these two factors are huge and mean a very different future ahead. But we can approach this as an opportunity to create a vision of what kind of world we want in say 2030, for ourselves and our children. Then what steps can we take towards that, what projects can we start now; in education, agriculture, with local government, businesses etc. The knowledge of our elders who lived with low energy needs and low carbon output has much to teach us, especially in local growing methods.”

SO WHO DO YOU TRUST?

Politicians sadly come way down the scale in the public’s esteem. Whilst it is one thing to not particularly believe what a politician promises or says – to view them all as crooks is another.

Already Barack Obama is back tracking on pledges he made on the campaign trail. That the pundits tell us is pragmatism and is therefore acceptable. Nobody, as of yet, is suggesting that the new president is a corrupt man.

However the real problem comes when people do not know where to turn because corruption is all around them.

I am not going to dwell on Marbella which has gained an international reputation for corruption through the GIL and post GIL eras. That municipality has been brought to its knees in public debt so the legacy of that criminal era will not only be witnessed by jailed councillors and businessman but in the very daily lives of its residents.

Today I cast my gaze on Estepona, Marbella’s neighbour to the west. On June 16 the National Police raided the town hall and town planning office and duly arrested the socialist mayor, Antonio Barrientos, on corruption and money laundering charges. Held in jail with him till last week when bail was agreed were his chief of staff and two councillors from PES (formerly members of GIL) that had been his coalition partners up till the local elections in May 2007.

Currently 63 people are implicated in the ‘Astapa’ town planning corruption case who are now awaiting trial. The number is largely made up of councillors and businessman. Estepona is deeply in debt and is struggling to make ends meet. The new socialist mayor is David Valadez, a staunch opponent of Barrientos, and who therefore is not implicated in his alleged crimes.

None the less councillors from the socialist PSOE, PES and Partido Andalucista are caught up in the ‘Astapa’ scandal. The only parties not tainted are the Izquierda Unida and the opposition Partido Popular. The IU says its will back Valadez’s administration but the PP has refused insisting on fresh elections as it says the current coalition is not above suspicion.

Well that is fine as far as it goes except now the Málaga prosecutor is seeking a jail term of 21 months for the PP president in Estepona, Ignacio Mena, at a court hearing that started today.

The complaint was laid by a local businessman and dates back to the time when Mena was himself the councillor for town planning between 2001 and 2003. The prosecutor claims coercion on the part of Mena and relates to the construction of an apartment and his alleged paralysation of permissions at the town hall to the benefit of another businessman. If convicted then Mena, the former GIL councillor Víctor Sánchez Pinacho and another businessman face jail terms.

Whilst there is nothing to link the PP to ‘Astapa’ if Mena is convicted then it drags the local party in to the corruption mire. So then who do the local people trust?

On January 16 the action group representing the people of Estepona has called a new street protest. They are angry that the town hall has taken no action to reduce or halt the major rises in local taxes and municipal charges and believe that only a major demonstration will keep the pressure on the councillors to act.

The group made up largely of local residents’ associations say the new charges for rubbish collection and water are simply too high. In addition they are facing major increases in the IBI property valuation tax. In a statement the action group pointed to “the precarious situation of many families and the poor situation of businesses and industry” in these times of economic crisis and their inability to meet this new financial burden.

They too are demanding fresh elections but that was before news of Mena’s court case broke. So it could be that the socialists, PES, PA and PP would all go again to the polls with councillors either in prison or facing trial. Only the IU and Estepona 2007 minority parties would be seemingly clean. So the question then for the people of Estepona is - who do you trust? Who do you vote for?

The January 16 march will undoubtedly be peaceful as have the demonstrations of the past. However when people feel their case is hopeless, that they are being taken for fools, then violence can easily surface. We only have to look at the present crisis in Greece.

The situation in Estepona is a tragedy for the local people. Yet Marbella and Estepona are not isolated cases for this scenario is played out in too many town halls, which endangers the very bedrock of democracy in Spain.

ESTEPONA: TRANSITION TOWN

I have written recently about Peak Oil and Peak Food. These are both linked to Transition Towns. This movement started in Ireland 4 years ago and now numbers some 600 communities throughout Europe. On November 4, Spain’s first Transition Town will be launched in Estepona.

Pioneering local environmentalist James Machin is very much the inspiration behind the launch of this project. He and others have been warning for some time that we are living at a crucial stage in human history.

James explained: “Humanity is at the point of a quantum structural change. This change will commence when the worldwide demand for oil exceeds supply. This moment is immanent, due to the phenomenon known as ‘Peak Oil’. Peak oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline.”

“The decline in oil availability will lead inevitably to a lower-energy, more localized future, in which we move from being consumers to being producer/consumers, where food, energy and other essentials are locally produced, local economies are strengthened, and we start to live within our means.”

During the transition period there will be problems, and so to prepare for these times, the ‘Transition Towns’ are coming into being. Hence James and other environmentalists have organized the ‘Transition Towns’ initiative in Estepona. The inaugural meeting will be held at the Centro Cultural Padre Manuel on November 4 at 20.00. (For further information contact James on 952 796124 or email machin@ya.com)

The primary objective of Transition Communities is to develop an ‘Energy Descent Strategy’ for the community. To achieve that three questions will be asked:

1. How will we experience oil shortfall in our community?
2. What does our community have that will work for us in a future with less oil?
3. What can we do as a community to prepare and respond?

James said: “I’m promoting the event using my donkey cart, which I've modified temporarily to be pulled by the bike. I'm leaving it in various key places around Estepona with the press release and a poster displayed. I ended up at Tolones in Ciudad Real the other evening when I chatted to the kids. They love the idea of Transition Town coming to Estepona.”