Diego Gafo, a member of the citizens’ group list and a social worker at the Cáritas hostel, along with the mayoral candidate Julio Comendador, has proposed that the vacant convents or the buildings that the Provincial Council keeps «abandoned» be used to accommodate those who arrive «with nothing, not even a roof over their heads.»
Comendador criticized the management of the city’s social services, which «leaves the most vulnerable people stranded,» with appointments that are delayed for more than three months, and he called for the position of a standby social worker to alleviate this dramatic reality.
Gafo detailed the situation faced by those who seek help from the Cáritas hostel. «We work with homeless people, who are the last ones, the ones nobody wants, the ones we don’t look at when we pass them on the street, the ones who have no money. They are the people society generally despises.»
«Many people have fallen through the cracks, with difficulties in paying bills, who don’t make it to the end of the month, many disadvantaged immigrant families. And although the social workers at the City Council are wonderful, and we maintain close collaboration, I also believe that the management of the City Council’s social services needs to be improved.»
«It is unacceptable for a person to request an appointment to be seen by social services and be given a date three or four months later. The town should be provided with more professionals, increase the resources to accommodate the most vulnerable groups, as well as create the position of a standby social worker to attend urgent situations that cannot be delayed,» he added.
Comendador emphasized that «those who come to the city’s social services for help are immediately referred to Cáritas, without even being seen by a specialist who evaluates their individual situation, seeking the best solution to a difficult and complicated circumstance.»
