Structural Survey

SUMMARY OF MEETING HELD BY EUC 6TH FEBRUARY 2008

The meeting was held at the Golf Course and chaired by Jesus Rodriguez. The translator was Victor Martinez and one other EUC representative was on the top table. There no representation by the Ayuntamiento. There were around 50-55 people in attendance including our lawyers, Rosa Luchon and Oscar Bornico.

Jesus Rodriguez made an initial statement advising that the Mayor was not present as she was unable to attend at the last minute. He then made a lengthy appeal for funds and defended the EUC’s legality. He made a number of false claims concerning the situation of our court case (we are actually pending a hearing date to be set by the Judge). He threatened that the El Hacho area will run into ruin unless residents pay the EUC (only about 9% of residents have paid so far, which corresponds to 25% of their budget). He advised that the AGM of the EUC will be held on 30th March and that in early April they hope to have the consent of the Mayor to issue further invoices from the EUC.

He invited questions from the floor which did not cover any new information or issues.

Eventually, our Lawyer, Rosa Luchon, was able to put forward the Plataforma’s point of view. She refuted the statements made by Jesus Rodriguez as false and in particular pointed out that our court case is definitely proceeding by producing paperwork as proof. She also doubted Jesus Rodriguez’ claim that the Mayor will give her consent to issuing new EUC invoices as the Mayor was not in attendance at the meeting – demonstrating a lack of interest towards the EUC.

Rosa’s statement (in Spanish) was greeted by a storm of applause from the Spanish residents in attendance. Oscar Bornico then translated Rosa’s statement into English. There followed various arguments between the top table and Oscar which resulted in his departure from the meeting. Other Plataforma members and supporters also walked out (around 12 in all).

The meeting then continued with other questions from the floor in English but the translation into Spanish by Victor Martinez was very poor and the questions were not responded to properly. This resulted in a number of other residents leaving the meeting as the English speaking attendees could not understand what was happening.

Other notes: Plataforma members should be aware that:

* Our lawyers continue to pressure the Mayor to make a decision regarding the EUC. They had a of meeting with her (before 6th February) in which alternative funding for El Hacho, instead of the EUC, was discussed and is being studied.
* Our lawyers continue to monitor the Judge’s response to our request for an Escrow Account. It should be noted that the Judge has agreed to consider our request for an escrow account which is a positive indication. It is in her power to refuse a request without consideration if she feels the matter is not relevant or appropriate.
* It appears that the EUC is running out of funds to pay their staff and themselves. This is why they are now making more effort to contact residents and are using “scare” tactics to try to obtain more funds. Members of the Plataforma should let others know that we are in a strong position and welcome new members to support our cause.

We will continue to monitor the situation and advise you accordingly.

Carmen Quintano Nicky Conway-Hann Oscar Bornico

SUMMARY OF THE POSITION OF PLATAFORMA
as at 23rd February 2008

THE PRESENT POSITION:

* Although there are entities similar to EUC in other areas of Spain, the difference here is that the EUC EL HACHO was set up illegally, without proper discussion and contact with the residents and has no time limit.
* Our case against the EUC has been accepted by the Judge in Malaga. By accepting the case, the Judge has indicated that there is a case to answer. Claims by the EUC that there is no case are completely erroneous.
* The Judge will set a hearing date at which both sides will put their arguments.
* At the time of initial presentation of the case to the Judge, our lawyers requested an escrow account be opened to accept payment of invoices pending a decision on the case. At that time the EUC had not re-issued their invoices and had not pressured the residents to pay. The Judge advised that until the EUC initiated further requests for funds, there was no need to open an escrow account. Subsequently, the EUC issued a circular to all residents urging them to pay the invoices. This was sufficient for our lawyers to return to the Judge and ask for the escrow account to now be opened. This request is pending a response from the Judge.
* Our lawyers have also met with the Mayor of Manilva to put our case and to try to find a solution outside of the court. The Mayor has listened to our complaints with regard to the illegality of the EUC and the manner in which it is being run. She has understood our concerns at the EUC’s “budget” which includes huge “loan” repayments and administration costs.
* Our lawyers have suggested an alternative way of obtaining funds for the Port area in raising the IBI by a small percentage for ALL residents in Manilva rather than penalising the few in the port area. This suggestion is being considered by the Mayor and we anticipate a response within the next week, (although, please note that the Mayor has recently undergone an operation and so has been out of office for a week).
* The Mayor recognizes the strength of our numbers and understands how strongly we feel about corruption in this area.
* She recognizes that the Town Hall already have the administration in place to collect IBI payments so the overheads of the EUC (some €90,000 per annum) are excessive.
* The Mayor is considering our suggestions on the basis that the Plataforma has a large membership and support. Given the small number of residents who generally vote in the Manilva area, the Plataforma has significant voting power.
* The Mayor requested that we urge all our members to become REGISTERED at the Town Hall (empadronamiento). By registering as residents at the Town Hall it is possible to ascertain the true number of people living in the area. This enables the Town Hall to collect more support from central Government in the form of public services etc. Failure to register means that the population of Manilva is not correctly counted and so we do not get the services we should. Residents should note that registering for Empadronamiento is totally different than being registered at the Hacienda for tax. Empadronamiento merely enables the Town Hall to count the true number of residents that are in the area – there is no tax or fee to pay and your details are for census purposes only.
* It should be noted that the Mayor did not attend the EUC meeting on 6th February. She cancelled only some 5 minutes before the meeting started. This is a strong indication that the Mayor is trying to distance herself from the EUC and is therefore unlikely to agree to further invoices being issued (although the we hope the escrow account will be opened shortly in any case).
* Whilst the port and surrounding area needs urgent maintenance at the present time, we believe it is imperative that we stand strong at this most important point. With our court case, the number of supporters and the strength of our legal team we are in a very good position to stop the misuse of funds in the El Hacho area and to obtain a satisfactory long term solution. The maintenance will be dealt with via the Town Hall directly through IBI, without the need for another committee with dubious credibility and inflated budgets.
* If the EUC attempt to hold their AGM on 30th March, we will, of course, ensure that our lawyers attend to represent the Plataforma and defend our rights
* Finally, as we have reached such a strong position it is now EVEN MORE ESSENTIAL that we continue to push for the best long term solution without weakening our resolve and giving into the “bully boy” tactics of the EUC.