At times of economic hardship and when many municipalities continue lobbying for funds from various allocations, there are mayors who have opted to spare no expense and hold welcome-to-Christmas activities that have required a hefty investment.
The Comptroller of Puerto Rico Yesmín Valdivieso, as the spending some municipalities are incurring came to light in press reports and on social media, made a call for there to be prudence in the use of public funds. Likewise, the president of the Federation of Mayors and mayor of Guaynabo, Ángel Pérez, asked his counterparts to set priorities.
Valdivieso maintained that she is concerned that there are exorbitant expenditures for Christmas activities and decorations in the municipalities and lamented that many mayors seem not to have essential services among their priorities when using public funds. Municipal spending is part of the periodic audits that the Office of the Comptroller carries out on the municipal governments.
The Comptroller pointed out that in the past the municipalities borrowed without measure from the Government Development Bank (BGF) and those debts still affect their coffers and are part of the financial decisions that contributed to the Country being bankrupt.
“I don't know whether the mayors carried out a study to determine whether their activities were viable. Look at the water park in San Germán: now they are going crazy looking for someone to manage it because the municipality doesn't have money to pay the loan it took out to build it. These are decisions that so far —and the latest who have made this type of decision— have been failures,” Valdivieso expressed to EL VOCERO.
The Surf N´Fun Water Park was developed by the municipality of San Germán at a cost of nearly $26 million and was inaugurated in 2015. It is currently closed, after generating great economic losses.
“Before jumping in and doing this type of thing (whether they are particular projects or investments in celebrations) they should make a list of priorities and establish what is a priority in the municipality, whether all the citizens' needs are being covered. They have to ensure that they use every cent in the best way and in the most correct way; for that they have to have priorities,” Valdivieso emphasized.
Skating rinks and seasonal decorations
In Utuado, it came to light that mayor Jorge Pérez allegedly used some $100 thousand in funds from federal allocations for covid-19 mitigation, on the installation of a skating rink in the town center, as part of the entertainment offerings for the Christmas season.
Although the municipal executive did not respond yesterday to this newspaper's calls and text messages, on a radio station (Red Informativa de Puerto Rico) he expressed that those funds were not solely for the purchase of “alcohol, masks, and hand sanitizer.”
Pérez had already been pointed out for having used federal funds intended to mitigate covid to buy a new SUV for more than $60 thousand. It is also alleged that he allocated part of those funds to a five-month contract for advertising consulting, for an amount of $291 thousand. Also that he used some of those funds to set up a drive-in theater and to broadcast the Olympics in the public square.
Meanwhile, another case regarding significant investments in Christmas activities or decorations is that of the Christmas lighting in Mayagüez, at a cost of about half a million dollars, denounced the political director of the New Progressive Party (PNP), José ‘Pichy’ Torres Zamora.
The municipal administration of Mayagüez awarded two contracts to the companies that would be in charge of the Christmas decoration and lighting for a total between the two of $490 thousand.
Despite calls and text messages, at the close of this edition neither the Press and Communications manager, Nelson Albino, nor the manager of municipal Housing and president of the Christmas committee, Javier Román, answered the questions on the subject.
In Camuy a skating rink was also installed in the public square, but mayor Gabriel Hernández said it will only operate for 10 days and maintained that, as he understands it, the rink represents a minor expense.
“It is the first time (we put up a skating rink). In the public square there were over 500 people (on Sunday) and over 400 on Saturday. People visiting local businesses, promoting their products, the artisans purely from Camuy. It is an attraction and that is what I am looking for: investment that is going to produce economic development,” he highlighted in statements to EL VOCERO.
The cost of the rink is $1,900 per day, for a total of $19 thousand. The municipal executive pointed out that he was able to make the investment because he had a surplus from the activity he held in the summer —called Camuy Summer Fest— for which he had the help of businesses, which made donations, as well as an allocation from the Tourism Company.
In addition, he added that he had 16% in revenue collection from municipal license fees above the projection, which he assured gives him a margin in the municipal finances.
Hernández emphasized that he did not use a single cent intended to mitigate covid for the ice rink, because he used a large part of the covid funds for the purchase of cisterns in rural neighborhoods where there is always a problem with the water supply.
Using funds with prudence
Mayor Ángel Pérez, for his part, pointed out that making good use of public resources is a responsibility that mayors have, all the more so when municipal revenues have diminished due to the millions in cuts they have received in the budget.
“Good judgment to define priorities must prevail in the administration of the municipal budget. Although Christmas activities are also necessary to boost the economy of the towns —because of the people who visit them and consume in their businesses— prudence must be exercised in public spending,” he indicated in written statements. At the close of this edition the president of the Association of Mayors of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), Luis Javier Hernández, had not responded to the request for a reaction on the Christmas spending in the municipal governments.
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