“We learn from the press of a new drain on the municipal coffers of our city. Arrical (Waste and Water Resources Management Authority) has published the lists of defaulting administrations throughout Calabria, with regards to waste. And despite the record of the most delinquent province belonging to Cosenza, the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria is no different”.
This is what was stated in a press note by the Faro movement.
“The fact that worries us – can be seen from the contents of the note – however, it is that of the Municipality of Palmi which, according to Arrical, would have a debt equal to €754,000.00 for the years 2021 and 2022 alone. The figure is more than alarming and Mayor Ranuccio did well to deny it, even if Arrical does not believe he invented that amount. Even if it were to be an error, even if only half of the figure indicated was correct, this would represent an exorbitant amount for our budget, also because any debt amounts relating to 2023 and the current year must be added to it. If we then consider that only a few days ago the President of SORICAL highlighted how the VINA aqueduct has a debt of around three million euros for the supply of water, the situation is starting to become dramatic”.
“Moreover, we are still waiting to know the debt exposure that the Varia Foundation – of which the Municipality of Palmi is the founder and holds approximately 99% of the assets – has for the 2023 edition of our most important festival. Despite the reassurances of the Mayor and the President of the Foundation, who in February reassured the citizens about the elimination of debts and the publication of the Foundation’s balance sheet as of April 30th, to date, there has been no further news on the matter. There is already talk of Varia 2024 trusting that citizens, fascinated by the idea of a new exciting Palmese summer, will no longer ask questions about the debts of the 2023 edition of the festival” – goes on.
“Unfortunately these debts will accumulate and our fear is that they will once again fall on the citizens of Palma, already oppressed by taxation that has grown disproportionately in recent years and which, unfortunately, is among the highest and would not be able to bear new increases. We therefore invite the Mayor to verify the accuracy of the Arrical amounts and to give the City an account of the debt situation towards Arrical, Sorical and the Varia 2023. We at the FARO Movement are ready to organize a public debate, also inviting the heads of the regional bodies , to reassure citizens about the presence of debts which, sooner or later inevitably, would fall on all of us” – he concludes.
