Controversy in Manacor over works that may further restrict access to the Roca path

ManacorThe Platform for Public and Open Paths, GADMA, and various entities defending public heritage have today expressed concern over the start of private works on the Roca path, in Manacor, and are demanding its immediate halt. On Monday, June 1, the first movements were observed for the construction of two dry stone columns to install a barrier that will further close off the path, even though it initially seemed it would be reopened to be included in the Manacor Paths Catalogue.

The City Council's response has been that the authorization for these works could not be denied because the path is not officially declared as public. The platforms claim that a path is considered public regardless of its inclusion in a catalogue and accuse the City Council of not defending citizens' interests: "We want to remind Mrs. Hinojosa (Urban Planning Councilor) and Mr. Oliver (Mayor of Manacor) that a path is public no matter how much it is not included in the catalogue; in this case, the City Council has stopped defending the general interests of citizens to favor a particular one".

Since the approval of the Government's Paths Law in 2018, the City Council has the obligation to keep the inventory of public paths in the municipality updated, although it has neglected it for years. In fact, the Council has been accused of infringing this law due to its negligence. In the General Plan approved in 2019, the paths were not included, with the promise to do so immediately afterward, a commitment that has not been fulfilled in six years. "Six years have passed and they continue to infringe a law approved by the Government and promoted by MÉS-esquerra and PSOE. Paths have continued to be closed and you haven't opened any!".

The spokespersons for the platforms have recalled that the Roca path is a public path, as demonstrated by a whole dossier with documents presented and registered at the Manacor City Council over a year ago. Despite the commitments made by the mayor, Miquel Oliver, and the Urban Planning delegate, Núria Hinojosa, to recover the path, the current works are interpreted as a contradiction to these promises. "Both Ms. Hinojosa and Mr. Oliver committed to moving forward with the recovery of this path and, instead, are further facilitating its closure, with the excuse that they cannot prevent it. They can do it! If they have truly initiated the recovery process, they can refuse to authorize construction", they criticize.

"It should be remembered that the people who defend the paths do a great altruistic job, putting in many hours of their time, dedicating their spirit of public service to do a job that the town halls should do. It goes without saying that we feel completely disappointed, abandoned, and with a sense of helplessness. It should be remembered that this path has received public interventions from the City Council," recall the platforms.

Prevarication

With the visible citizen support demonstrated during the excursion along the path on Easter Monday, when nearly 800 people marched to the Roca de Castellet, the platforms have reiterated the demand for an immediate halt to the enclosure works, expressing disappointment and powerlessness. "The mayor and Ms. Hinojosa, with this attitude, are prevaricating and consciously and continuously infringing the Law of Paths. Being at the head of a town hall implies making political decisions; if not, why are you there?", maintain GADMA and the Platform for Public and Open Paths.

The representatives of the platforms consider that both the mayor and Ms. Hinojosa are acting prevaricatingly and are consciously infringing the Law of Paths. The call is clear: citizens deserve the attention of the authorities and a political decision that defends public interests against private pressures.