City sponsors anti-mining referendum to protect water sources; Employment scam revealed; Retirements cost IESS millions; The flying virgin

Miércoles, 9/9/2020

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –
De la pagina cultural –

Cuatro obras teatrales son trasladadas a libro (Four theatrical works are transferred to book) – Playwright Diego Ortega presented the first volume of his work, “Teatro.” the book has 4 stories written between 2010 and 2016. Two of these were produced and staged in Cuenca. There is a limited edition of 100 of these specially bound books. You can buy one through Ortega’s social networks or call 098 479 3946. Cost: $5.00. <That’s got to be the cheapest book in town – especially with its cover which is in relief.>

Obras de teatro en línea – The first festival of online theater, “Escena Virtual” started today. The 8 works will be presented until 16/9. Get your pass from the Facebook account of Escena Virtual at https://n9.cl/nvmq.

Dictan taller de policromía – Between el 14 & 23/9, CIDAP will have a free workshop on polychrome on religious sculpture with maestro Alex Herrera. Each class is 2 hours. To participate, send an email to etepan@cidap.gob.ec. Get more information at www.cidap.gob.ec.

Otras cosas –

Cuenca Mayor Pedro Palacios talks to the press after presenting the city’s request to hold an anti-mining referendum to the Constitutional Court in Quito.

Titular – Ni recargos ni multas en 2020 (No surcharges or fines in 2020) – EMOV (Empresa Municipal de Movilidad) will not impose surcharges or fines on drivers who did not register their cars in the appropriate month this year. As of agosto, 43,991 motor vehicles and 8,057 motorcycles <Half of which seem to be moto delivery bikes.> have been registered in Cuenca out of a parque automotor (automotive fleet- our phrase for the day, just because it’s an interesting use of words) of about 112,000 vehicles. Normally not registering your car in the proper month would get you a $25 fine. The fine for not getting the Revisión Técnica Vehicular is $20.

Un millonario perjuicio al IESS por jubilaciones anticipadas (Damage to the IESS due to early retirements in millions) – IESS has been damaged by almost $30 million by former officials who retired early due to invalidez y discapacidad (disability and disability – the subtleties of how those two words differ escapes me). Jorge Wated, the president of the board of IESS denounced the collusion that allowed 640 employees to retire early for invalidez in an irregular manner leaving a loss of over $20 million. There were another 227 irregular processes for retirements for discapacidad that cost IESS almost $8 million. <And the graft goes on.>

Pedían USD 1,200 por cargos en el Municipio ($1,200 asked for positions in the Municipality) – At least 10 people were scammed by a city official who was offering jobs or contracts in Pedro Palacio’s administration for $1,200. The jobs ranged from tram drivers to contracts with drivers with their own vehicles. 3 of the victims were contacted with offers of work and what caught their attention was there were no other requirements other than payment of the money. In the case of one of the drivers, his vehicle was 40 years old and normally only drivers with relatively new vehicles receive those contracts. <And I bet his car wasn’t a Mercedes SL with a pagoda roof, a Porsche 944, or a Ferrari Testarossa.> The victims paid the money, asked for and got a receipt, and were told the start date of the contract was yesterday at noon. When they went to the city and asked for the official, an analyst in the Public Works department, they were told that the employee was on vacation. The cases are being investigated by the Azuay prosecutor’s office. This scam is similar to one that took place in marzo before the health emergency.

Clausura por afectación al ornato (Closure due to impact of decoration) – The Comisión de Áreas Históricas y Patrimoniales closed a motorcycle store in the El Otorongo sector because of its paint colors and signage which did not meet the conservation rules for the Centro Histórico. The owner had been notified about the regulations 3 times. These prohibit phosphorescent colors and painting signage directly on the walls. The store was painted a strong blue with yellow letters on the wall. <Could you call that grafitti because it’s inappropriate for its location?

Virgen de El Cisne – The Archdiocese of Cuenca confirmed that the sacred image of the Virgen de El Cisne will fly over Cuenca on viernes y sábado with the possibility of flights over other cantons and Cañar. The definite schedule will be announced after meetings between the clergy and Army.

Segundo intento por consulta contra la minería en Cuenca (Second attempt for referendum against mining in Cuenca) – Mayor Palacios and 3 council members submitted the city’s request for a referendum to prevent large scale mining in water recharge zones to the Corte Constitucional. This is the second attempt. The first try and two other requests from the prefect Yaku Pérez were rejected. For this new proposal, the city worked with a specialized legal team to avoid making the same mistakes. If the court accepts the referendum for processing, it has 20 days to decide if it will or will not accept the referendum request.

And that’s all for today so Hasta ? –

Jeanne