From public recognition to dismissal: the Government dismisses the Director of Costs who denounced a bribe

PalmaIt has not been four months since the Government expressed its "pride and satisfaction" for the conduct of the Director General of Coasts, Maria Joaquina Ferrer, who reported an attempted bribery by a businessman from Mallorca. But the Executive has shifted from public recognition to the dismissal of Ferrer, who has not even been in office for a year and will now return to her position as a civil servant of the CAIB. The dismissal will become effective this Friday in the Governing Council.

One of the reasons that has precipitated the dismissal has been the bottlenecks in the concessions for beach services in Formentera, which have generated great discontent among businessmen and the island council. Executive sources confirm these frictions.

A resolution from the Directorate General of Coasts in May for temporary facilities from 2026-2029 denied authorization for 681 sun loungers and 339 umbrellas and provoked criticism from the Formentera Council to the Government (Coasts did authorize 1,169 sun loungers and 589 umbrellas). Llevant, ses Illetes, Migjorn, es Pujols, Cavall d'en Borràs, and Copinar were the beaches affected by this decision.

The Minister of the Sea and the Water Cycle, Juan Manuel Lafuente, supported Ferrer. "We all have to comply with the Coasts Regulations, whether we like it or not," he said at the time, in addition to dismissing any political motivation behind the denial from Coasts. Lafuente explained that the Pact had granted concessions for eight years, even though they can only be granted for four years, which is why the authorizations had to be adapted "to the reality of 2026".

But Lafuente's support has reached its limit and the crisis caused by the concessions in Formentera has precipitated Ferrer's dismissal. The person in charge of replacing her is the former mayor of Llucmajor, Joan Cristòfol Jaume Mulet, with a political profile that contrasts with Ferrer's, who is much more technical.

20,000 euros in a box of chocolates

The National Police arrested at the end of April a businessman from Mallorca who tried to bribe Ferrer. The man had gone to the office of a senior official to resolve a matter of permits related to his businesses and gave him a box of chocolates. Ferrer's surprise was immense when he opened it to offer some to the workers and found inside 20,000 euros in 50 euro bills. The director general immediately reported the find and called the Unit for Economic and Fiscal Delinquency (UDEF). The police took fifteen days to locate the businessman.

"He acted as any civil servant or any public management position of the Government should act", said the Vice President of the Government, Antoni Costa, at the time. "I can do nothing but express my satisfaction with the Director General of Costs", he added.

Ferrer then regretted that "the idea of making private uses of the coast outside the norm" still persists and stressed that "progress is being made in coastal management, especially in terms of control, inspection, and processing of files." "The objective is to reverse this dynamic: act with more determination, reduce margins of impunity, and consolidate the idea that public domain is a collective good that must be protected. In this regard, it is essential to find a balance between economic activities and coastal conservation," he stated in an interview with ARA Balears.