Today, the Ponferrada City Council hosted the institutional event of the Day of Bierzo and the Virgin of Encinawith speeches from the various authorities, whose main demands once again focused on improving health and infrastructure in the region.
The event was chaired by the mayor of the city, Marco Morala, the delegate of the Government of Castilla y León, Nicanor Sen, the councilor for Environment, Housing and Spatial Planning of the Government of Castilla y León, Juan Carlos Suárez Quiñones, the president of the Provincial Council of León, Gerardo Álvarez Courel and the president of the Regional Council of BierzoOlegario Ramon.
Morala complained to the various administrations “an additional commitment to Ponferrada” with the investments that the city and El Bierzo they deserve it “because right now, missing some trains of innovation, new economic developments, digitalization and reindustrialization is to be condemned to the fact that these trains will never return,” he said. That is why he asked the patron saint of Bierzo, the Virgen de la Encina, for “the budgetary support that we deserve with the same dignity, necessity, urgency and justice as the other territories of Spain.”
The councilor also hoped that in the coming year, all the political groups that make up the Ponferrada City Council will agree to respond to the needs of the citizens. In his words, there is no lack of allusions to the feeling of being from Bercia: “being from Ponferrada is not a simple identity but it proudly links us to a millennial past and places us facing the future” he added.
The speeches of the representatives of the other administrations had a much more demanding tone and reviewed the different investments of each of them. In this sense, the Minister of Environment, Housing and Territorial Planning of the Commission, Juan Carlos Suárez Quiñones, stated that “the Commission is concerned about health with important investments, such as in primary care with the new health center in Bembibre or the five million for the equipment of the Bierzo hospital and the radiotherapy that will become a reality. “El Bierzo is a territory that has a pulse and is growing. There is a clear resurgence of the parameters of the region. This enterprising Bercian personality that relies on sectors such as agriculture and tourism and the industry that is beginning to emerge makes Bierzo very lively,” he added.
Suárez-Quiñones also asked the central government to release the money for the expansion of the Tvitec company, vital for the industry of Bierzo, while the Council will invest 19 million in the expansion of the industrial zone of El Bayo, where this company is located. He also recalled that thanks to the policies of the Council, the GDP of the Community increases by three points, as do exports, the internationalization of companies and unemployment decreases, “especially in Bierzo, with a little more 6,000 registered, half of the 2015 figure“, he finished.
From the Central Government, the delegate in Castilla y León, Nicanor Sen, assured that El Bierzo is a vital region for our Community. On the part of the government, we are aware of its great challenges. A territory that will soon have alternatives to Manzanal Loop“The major axes take time but we have started the countdown,” he declared before recalling the investments in telecommunications “which bring citizens closer together and are essential tools.”
From the Provincial Council of León, its president, Gerardo Álvarez Courel, demanded that the Authority take charge of the Valdeprado motorway and that the intervention in the collapse of the CL-631 in Páramo del Sil be completed. But above all, he once again asked for better health for Bierzo. “The Council must take care of the local health centres and clinics as well as the Hospital del Bierzo,” he asked.
He asked the central government to speed up projects such as the study of the Lazo del Manzanal, the A-76 highway and the reopening of the Castro viaduct. Courel also reviewed the investments made by his administration and said: “I maintain my commitment to work for this territory with the aim of building a better future.
Finally, the president of Bierzo Regional CouncilOlegario Ramón also spoke about the lack of health care in the region or the poor communications by train and road. “I continue to demand a decisive commitment to our territory.” Finally, he demanded his own seat on the Council and claimed the important work that this administration is doing.
After the institutional speeches, the central event of the day began, with the offering to the Virgen de la Encina, this year, on behalf of the City Council of Benuza whose mayor, Domingo Cabo, He asked the boss for better roads and telecommunications for his municipality. From this commune, his neighbors offered to the Virgin all the products of the countryside.
