Unnecessary and scandalous are just two of the many words used to describe the controversy surrounding the new church organ in Benidorm. The church of San Jaime, located in the Old Town up at the Mirador have just spent an eye watering 332,000 euros on a new organ - apparently the "Rolls Royce" of organs and made up of three keyboards and two thousand pipes.

Fransisco Delgado, President of the Tourism Federation described the amount of money invested by the parish as an "unprecedented scandal". However, Luis Lopez, priest at the church pointed out that instrument was totally paid for by the parish after many years of fundraising and no money was diverted from other projects.

However, this is where the controversy lies with many locals....  The overriding response has been that "it was not the time to invest in this when there are many people who do not have enough to eat". "Caritas" the charity run by the Catholic church to help those in need is always desperate for funding. In fact, the money from the sale of the "love padlocks", removed from the staircase leading from Mal Pas beach in the Old Town, went to this charity. In most supermarkets you will see a trolley or basket at the entrance or near to the tills with "Caritas" written on, asking you to buy an extra bag of rice or pasta to donate to the charity.

Demand for clothing and food in Benidorm has tripled since the crisis began and much criticism has been directed at the church that money was spent in this way instead of helping those in need. Delgado added that he went to deliver a donation of food to Caritas from the 17 business owners in his association only last week, yet finds that the same institution is wasting money on on an organ! "It seems they are out of reality with what is happening".

A small minority are in favor of the acquisition though - saying that it will increase the cultural heritage and attract more people. A spokesperson highlighted that Benidorm is a tourist town and this will give a huge boost to cultural tourism and even pave the way for musical concerts and recitals in the church. Opinion is certainly divided and the matter was even raised at the Town Hall. Gema Amor, Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Tourism said " many families are having a bad time at present and all must lead by example, but as it was not funded by public money then it is not an issue they can get involved in"

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