Voted Best
11 - 17 October 2018
A XARQUÍA - C OSTA T ROPICAL YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION Credit: Sally Underwood
ISSUE NO. 1736
Newspaper in Spain 2017 & 2018
WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM
Councillor on trial A FORMER councillor of Rincon de la Victoria is facing two-and-a-half years in prison for allegedly not following the rules when hiring a cleaning company. Jose Antonio Ruiz, the former head of the Department for the Environment at Rincon de la Victoria Council, is accused of abusing his position to by-pass normal procedures and offer cleaning contracts to two businesses between 2010 and 2011. According to prosecutors, Ruiz, ‘verbally contracted several cleaning services… dispensing with basic administrative rules.’ The contracts totalled €238,222 worth of work. The heads of the two businesses hired for the work are also on trial, each facing three years and three months in
EL INGENIO: Is set for expansion.
€6m shopping boost VELEZ-MALAGA shopping centre El Ingenio is set to receive a multi-million Euro facelift and expansion. It is claimed the €6 million development will create new shopping areas, a modernised look, an online shopping facility, and create 120 new jobs. The planned works are due to be completed in time for El Ingenio’s 20th anniversary in 2020. The well-known shopping centre, which attracts more than nine million visitors a year, is the largest employer in Velez-Malaga, providing around 1,200 jobs. El Ingenio’s owners, Salsa Inmobiliaria, announced they will ‘modernise’ the current
facilities while adding a further 4,800 square metres of space to the current 48,000 square metres. Salsa Inmobiliaria explained the new space will be used to attract new brands to the centre and also provide, ‘new experiences for customers and new rest areas.’ Leonardo Galdeano, the centre’s director, said the plan was to also, “adapt to the new reality of the market. Online sales grow by 20 per cent per year and are the main enemy of trade and employment,” adding the plans would, “continue to generate wealth in Axarquia.” He added the project would not only create space for new stores but also expand some
current shops in efforts to maintain good relationships with some of its largest brands. Mr Galdeano said, “world leader Inditex, owner of Zara, last year closed 99 stores that did not comply with their new approach towards aesthetics and modernisation.” He added he hoped the facelift would attract new shoppers from outside the Velez-Malaga and Torre del Mar areas. Currently around 4.5 million visitors to El Ingenio come from the local area. A spokesman for Sala Inmobiliaria concluded the move would, “continue generating employment. This is a firm commitment to sustainable
economic growth, based on people, local commerce and innovation.”
prison. Prosecutors allege the men submitted, ‘numerous invoices, some of which did not correspond to real and material work.’ Lawyers say the former politician, ‘proceeded to rubber stamp,’ the works, ‘without carrying out any checks and knowing that the work was unnecessary.’ One company supposedly submitted invoices totalling €144,119, eventually accepting payment vouchers of €15,347, while the other submitted €141,169 worth of bills and receiving €31,700 in vouchers. Jose Antonio Ruiz is on trial for ‘prevarication and other malfeasance.’ In addition to jail time, prosecutors are demanding the former politician be disqualified from public office for eight years.