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| La Nucia Town Hall |
La Nucia - my home town which neighbours Benidorm, holds a record that any town in Spain would be proud of – they have had the same Mayor for the last 12 years. Bernabé Cano has been voted in for the last 3 elections and his PP party has the majority of seats on the council - so apart from his dashing good looks he must be doing something right. I had the pleasure of interviewing him and mentioned the first time I had seen him – some 12 years ago when he was in a parade, walking behind the priest in some procession in the town. At that point I wasn´t aware who he was, but in his dark suit, tie and hand on his chest he looked like something out of the Godfather movies… this he laughed at and agreed, yes like Al Pacino – at least he has a sense of humour!
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| In the Mayors office |
Half of the registered residents in the town are non Spanish and the Town Hall has an allocated Councillor for foreign residents, Bart Gommans – who most importantly speaks several languages, including very good English. This the Mayor said is a very important point, to make all the residents feel included and part of the community even if they have not mastered the language – I want to be Mayor of ALL the people, not just the Spanish residents he emphasised.
Politics runs in his family – his father was also Mayor. However, by profession Bernabé is a medical doctor and prior to being voted in he had 2000 patients at the local Centro de Salud. They are very similar positions he told me in that they are both built on trust and confidentiality – and he is on call 24 hours a day. Often he finds when speaking to residents on council business they finish the conversation by asking his opinion on some medical matter or showing him an ache or pain they have!
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| Altea parade last month |
Last month I saw him taking part in the Altea Moors and Christians parade and asked him his connection, as I know he lives not far from me in La Nucia. He told me that his wife is originally from Altea and the family – he has two daughters aged 8 and 13 all belong to a penya in Altea, therefore taking an active role in the tradition every year.
A typical working day in the office is from 8am until 3pm, but then in the evenings and especially at the weekends he attends numerous openings and meetings. La Nucia was voted European City of Sport for 2013 and as if that was not an honour enough, he is also to receive an award from Central Government for the sporting complex “Camilo Cano” and its facilities, with a presentation at the end of this year by King Juan Carlos in Madrid. Bernabé has always been a very keen sportsman, almost playing football to professional level but five operations on his knee due to injury put pay to that career path – now he is more spectator, although he still manages to kick a football around when he has some spare time. Last week he opened a new Town Hall extension on an urbanisation in La Nucia and Regional Minister for Infrastructure, Planning & Environment attended from Valencia - along with a host of television cameras.
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| At opening attended by Regional Minister Isabel Bonig |
Area wise La Nucia is vast – there is 186km of roads, far more than in Benidorm. Despite this it is probably the most secure of all the towns in the municipality, with 80 security cameras all of which are monitored 24/7 and some have number plate recognition – perhaps explaining why so many foreigners in particular choose to live in the town. Every year the residents are invited to the police station where they are taken on a guided tour and the state of the art camera room is viewed – something that has proved very popular… there is even a shooting range in the basement.
So what, I asked are his future plans, both as Mayor and personally leading up to the next election in 2015. Construction wise everything in the town is complete – lighting and services across all the urbanisations are finished and it is just a case of maintenance now. His biggest and most important challenge between now and 2015 is to ensure that all residents in the town register at the Town Hall, as funding from Central Government is allocated dependant on registered inhabitants. This is true of all towns – if you do not register then the council is not getting the correct percentage funding for its citizens, yet you would still expect adequate healthcare and schooling for instance. You can´t have it both ways – if you do not register then you cannot moan about lack of services!
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| Serving residents paella at European Day |
“So will you try for a record fourth term or look for higher office politically” I asked him. The Generalitat in Valencia have been asking him for some time now but the problem with that he said is that he will not be among the people. Instead he will be stuck in an office policy making, which is not something that appeals to him. He prefers to be among the people helping at local level, it is almost like a vocation. So if he is unsuccessful in the next election (highly unlikely) don´t worry, you will still see him around the town – but more likely as your doctor!
