Every citizen has a political ideology that he defends within his group of friends and implements through his vote. Behind every ideology there is a social model. However, this is only part of the policy; On a day-to-day basis, what ordinary citizens expect from politicians is that we solve the problems they face, and in most cases these have little to do with ideology and more to do with governance and governance, good or bad. desire to help others.
We, the municipal councils, know very well that such issues have little to do with ideology, because we are the meeting point between citizens and other Public Administrations. We are the closest administration that citizens first turn to. We, mayors and councillors, are the politicians that citizens rub shoulders with at the bar or bakery, and the ones who welcome them to city hall to listen to their problems, whether they are within our jurisdiction or not, hoping that the problems will be solved. In this sense, politicians are friends of citizens, because that’s what friends are there for, they’re there to help in the face of difficulties. The situation is the same in a big city like Torrevieja and in a small district of Vega Baja. There is, or should be, no political ideology when it comes to helping a neighbor access the welfare benefits he or she is entitled to, keeping the town clean, or fixing a broken swing in the park.
Therefore, the city council’s plenary hall is the most convenient political room to put aside the ideologies that divide politicians and work together on unifying factors such as making life easier for neighbors, improving public services, and keeping the streets safe and clean. , etc.
Proof that these everyday problems do not have an ideology is that they tend to be the same or very similar in all municipalities, regardless of their size or population.
For this reason, there is a need for municipal and provincial federations. As mayors and council members, we must receive continuous training and share experiences and projects. Even if municipalities are governed by different political parties, the solution that works for one town in El Comtat may be the solution for another town in Marina Alta. The needs are generally the same even when they are the responsibility of higher public administrations, and it is good that once again we come together to demand them, regardless of the political color of each city council or each department. Let’s not forget that city councils are the citizens’ gateway to the Generalitat and even the government of the nation. Mayors and councilors have easier access to a councilor than any of our neighbours, especially the most disadvantaged.
The city councils must be coordinated among ourselves and together with the councils and the Generalitat. This will enable the voice of municipalism to be heard more easily. Let us never forget that we owe it to our neighbors, and that when they have a problem, they do not want to know anything about the problems and differences between administrations or between politicians from different parties. Whatever management they want is the solution. They go to council members or mayors whom they can easily reach and trust that he will handle the necessary procedures to find a solution.
And ultimately, what citizens expect from politicians is for them to be effective and efficient. Effective in achieving goals, that is; To solve the problem that has arisen. This is efficient in terms of optimizing the resources used in the solution. The latter is very important because resources are always limited. These come from budgets, and these come from taxes paid by neighbors. These taxes depend on the wealth produced by the municipality, province, region or country. But wealth must be created. It’s not like air, it’s there and you have to capture it. Wealth must be produced every day, and there is no other way to do this than to work and labor, and this is achieved every day by traders who open the shutters of their workplaces, workers who get up early to go to the factory, or workers who go to the factory. or entrepreneurs who risk their personal assets every month to keep their businesses running. That’s why we politicians have an obligation not only to be effective, but also to be efficient: to optimize budgets, to ensure that every penny gets the highest possible return. Doing what our grandmothers said about getting 6 pesetas from the dollar (four cents for every three euro cents).
Efficiency in public administrations is linked to agility. We cannot overwhelm our neighbors with bureaucracy; Sometimes the copied documents and procedures take too long and end up exasperating the citizen who goes from window to window or from website to website. Hence the importance of intergovernmental coordination and cooperation between city councils. Citizens need to perceive that we are agile in taking the necessary actions to open their business, establish the terrace of their bar, obtain benefits or carry out the necessary work to prevent their street from turning into a river. time four drops fall. These are just some of the examples that despondent and enrage citizens who see everything being postponed because of arguments between us or by wanting to insert political ideology into a place where it has no place.
We should no longer rely on budget increases to solve any problem. At least before we make sure we’re doing everything possible to solve the problem with the resources we have. Only then will we ensure that citizens see us as allies and friends.
Alicante is a province with a very special territory, where municipalities with high populations coexist with other municipalities that are part of Spain with lower populations. In addition to municipalities such as Alicante with a population of 337,304 or Elche with a population of 234,205, Torrevieja with a population of 82,842, Orihuela with a population of 78,940 or Benidorm with a population of 69,118, there are 179 municipalities in the province with a population of less than one hundred. Alicante, along with Madrid and Barcelona, is the province of Spain with the highest number of foreigners. There are industrial municipalities such as Elche or Alcoy; Tourists like Benidorm or Torrevieja and agriculture like those in Vega Baja. But beyond these differences in population, type of economy and size, there are people with very similar problems, especially the most disadvantaged, those who need mayors and councilors the most, whether they live in Turkey or not. A city like Benidorm or a town like Almudaina.
We all know that there are few things in life more rewarding than helping others, and in politics, the closer you are to the citizen, the easier it is. And in this regard, mayors and council members are the politicians who have the easiest job. So let’s dedicate ourselves to this.