Vicent Marí, on trial for a €250,000 contract during the pandemic

PalmThe Provincial Court of Palma has ordered the continuation of proceedings to trial against the president of the Island Council, Vicent Marí, for awarding a €250,000 contract during the pandemic to a company owned by a former councilor, in the case known as 'La Vida Islados' (Island Life), as well as for alleged coercion and obstruction of justice in uncovering the irregularities. The Socialist spokesperson in the Island Council, Elena López Bonet, appeared before the media to explain the content of the Court's rulings, which found "sufficient evidence for the case to continue to trial." Thus, the Provincial Court has decided to send Vicent Marí to trial.

López Bonet has strongly criticized the Popular Party for attempting to distort reality this Wednesday by claiming that the Provincial Court "endorses" the emergency contract. The Socialist spokesperson described this attempt as "sad and shameful" and denounced the manipulation of the court ruling, which does not dismiss the case but, on the contrary, "overturns the dismissal and orders the proceedings to continue until the oral trial." The spokesperson reiterated the wording of the ruling, which is crystal clear in stating that "whether the personal relationships between Mr. Vicent Marí and the individuals who were part of the company had a direct bearing on the awarding of the contract will be a matter to be determined during the oral trial." "The most serious case the Consell d'Eivissa has ever faced."

The PSOE spokesperson in the Consell Insular has described this case as "the most serious thing the Consell Insular of Ibiza has ever experienced" and one that "directly affects public trust in institutions." For all these reasons, the PSOE spokesperson stated that "Mr. Vicent Marí must resign from his position as president of the Consell Insular of Ibiza."

"He must resign because the highest institution in Ibiza cannot be presided over by a person who will have to stand trial for alleged corruption and coercion within the auditor's office." "He must resign because the citizens of Ibiza deserve clean, transparent institutions that serve the public interest, not those tainted by suspicions of cronyism and favoritism," and "because of the extreme gravity of going to trial for allegedly coercing the highest-ranking official responsible for the legality of the Consell Insular's public accounts."

"He must resign out of respect for the citizens."

"He must resign, ultimately, out of respect for the citizens of Ibiza and the institution he represents," stated the PSOE spokesperson. She also wanted to make it clear that "neither the PSOE nor anyone else has ever questioned the emergency situation experienced during COVID-19." What has been questioned, she explained, is how this emergency procedure was carried out and whether it was done to favor someone, in this case, the company of a former PP councilor. The Socialist spokesperson also stated that this ruling by the Provincial Court definitively dismantles the accusations made by Vicent Marí in December 2024, after the provisional dismissal of the case was announced, when, accompanied by his councilors and mayors at a press conference, he literally stated, "the Anti-Corruption Office."