The Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia (OAC) has put its focus on the Mataró City Council, not only because of the complaint filed by an interim architect in reference to the excess of hiring “by exceptional means” or, in other words, by hand. , but for having terminated her even though she had the status of “protected whistleblower” by resolution of the director of the office that investigates the alleged irregularities.
The interim promoted an investigation procedure in the OAC when detecting at least nine appointments and hiring of architects during 2021 through the “exceptional route.” Three of these professionals and a managerial position were hired to carry out the Atles Urbanístic, without their positions being made public.
The complaint refers to the personnel selection process under the pretext of urgency, in which the circumstances are not proven, with people who were later not assigned to the purpose of the aforementioned hiring. Additionally, one of these people had to carry out tasks for which there was already an official, causing her to lose her functions, which would entail "misappropriation of public funds", since the alleged motivation was to hire a person "circumventing the principles of equality, merit and capacity.”
Since 2015, the interim official had been denouncing, through several litigations that were unsuccessful, the dozen irregular hirings, which included that of the human resources director himself, whose position had not been put up for competition for more than five years.
Shortly after the Anti-Fraud Office notified the Mataró City Council of the investigation procedure and began to request information in this regard, the complainant was dismissed by decree of the delegate councilor for Public Safety, Mobility, Health and Human Resources. A situation that the OAC considers irregular, since it has been granted the status of protected whistleblower through a resolution of the director of the Anti-Frau Office. For this reason, they urge the City Council to “preventively suspend the appointment of the person proposed to fill the architect position” called for in the new selection process.
What initially, according to City Hall sources consulted, was “a simple labor dispute” now takes on judicial overtones due to the initiation of a disciplinary file by the OAC for several administrative infractions. Faced with this situation, the municipal government, formed by a majority of the PSC in coalition with two councilors from En Comú Podem, has promoted a special information commission to deal with issues arising from Antifrau. Along these lines, it has also required the secretary to carry out an analysis of the documentation to safeguard the right of the protected person and open a period of information or prior actions on the administrative procedure in relation to three appointments to draft the Urban Atlas and the provision of a management position.
