Tenerife Day Event Under Fire Over Public Spending, Contracts

"Tenerife Day," a new event started by the island council's president, Rosa Dávila (CC), has sparked a debate. People are questioning how public money was spent and how contracts were given out for the event. The celebration, held on February 2 at the Adán Martín Auditorium in Tenerife's capital, has led to concerns about its cost and the way services were chosen.

The event, which also launched the new "Tenerife Awards," has received mixed reactions. Some see it as a successful official event, while others believe it was mainly designed to boost the image of the current president. This idea is similar to the Canary Islands Awards, which Jerónimo Saavedra started in 1984, though those awards took decades to become widely accepted.

Reports suggest that the event cost at least 48,000 euros. A key part of the controversy is that this money was not put through a public bidding process. According to the Public Sector Contracts Law, for anything costing over 15,000 euros, the government must get at least three price quotes from different companies. Investigations show this rule was not followed for Tenerife Day. Because of this, the island government now has to explain in detail how every euro was spent.

The socialist opposition party plans to thoroughly check all the expenses for this celebration. However, despite requests from this newspaper since last Tuesday, the island government has not yet provided a full list of what was spent.

Tenerife Day was organized very quickly. The island council (Cabildo) approved the event on January 28, only five days before it happened. This decision was made suddenly, outside of the usual meeting agenda. Its urgency was explained, and councilors from Coalición Canaria and Partido Popular all voted in favor. The approval stated that the event was for "attending citizens and representatives of the most important public and private organizations on the Island and in the Canary Islands."

While exact figures beyond the initial 48,000 euros are not available, some costs have been identified. These include using the Tenerife Auditorium and its services, the artistic direction and coordination of the gala, various musical and artistic shows, and outdoor lighting and projections. Rules allow for "protocol and representative events and courtesies" to be approved without a mandatory report from legal or financial advisors at first (since it's not directly approving spending). However, the government must still fully explain all the money spent afterwards.

One of the people honored was the late Cristino de Vera, recognized for his work. However, the 48,000 euro figure is thought to be a low estimate. It's expected that the final cost of the event, which featured musical acts, a cocktail reception for 400 guests, video production, and appearances by people like tenor Celso Albelo, will be much higher.