The Vila Real de Santo António Council (VRSA) has already received the third and final tranche of the Municipal Support Fund (FAM), in the amount of 2,5 million euros, but only after having operated «a 20% reduction in the expense".
The money will be used to «pay off debt and consolidate the path to financial balance required of the City Council», assured the autarchy.
The Vila Real Chamber saw the FAM managers suspend her financial support for about a year, for considering "it is not feasible to continue providing the contractual financial assistance, without the Municipality previously assuming the appropriate correction of its way of functioning", as read in the FAM - Municipal Support Fund execution report for the 4th quarter of 2017.
This is because, among other non-compliances, Vila Real de Santo António, on the revenue side, only implemented six of the 11 financial rebalancing measures to which it was obliged and did not comply with any of the 11 foreseen, on the expenditure side, at least in full.
In the report, the FAM managers made the lifting of the suspension of compliance with various measures dependent on "increasing by 10% the collection of revenue from fees and taxes, selling the campsite, leasing water concessions, demonstrating the economic viability of SGU's medium term or close the company, proceed with the immediate introduction of the tourist tax, end discretionary expenses without legal framework, reduce by 70% spending on bus rentals and 50% on parties and reduce support for associations and clubs by 50%”, among others.
The results of this report were denounced in September by the PS, the main opposition party, which accused the PSD executive, led since the end of 2017 by Conceição Cabrita, from try to hide the situation.
Without responding directly to the accusations of the socialists, the Chamber of VRSA announced the implementation of "a rigorous plan that is being carried out with maximum responsibility and whose mission is to recover the municipal accounts", which will meet these demands.
«To take this project forward, there will be several changes in the internal functioning of the Municipality and the municipal company VRSA SGU, which will be guided by an even stricter management in areas such as the contracting of services, the organization of sectors, the application of budgetary restraint measures or the support to be allocated», warned the municipality.
The "main internal measures" to be announced were the "reduction in the contracting of goods and services, the reduction of telecommunications charges, the reduction of fuel expenses, reviewing the supply of External Goods and Services, reorganizing the events policy, promoting greater criterion in the attribution of social support, develop a support program for clubs and local associations and internal reorganization of services».
Now, and about a year after the report was drawn up, by the FAM managers, the Chamber has managed to unlock the missing tranche of support.
«Following the fulfillment and correct application of the budgetary control and containment measures, the municipality of Vila Real de Santo António has already received the third financial tranche from the Municipal Support Fund (FAM), a measure that will further contribute to stabilizing the accounts the municipality, pay off debts to suppliers and settle contingent liabilities», summarized the municipality, in a press release.
"The data that prove this positive budget execution are contained in the most recent report by the FAM, for the first, second and third quarters of 2018, which confirms that "corrective measures have been taken in relation to the budgetary performance and evolution of the municipality's debt since 2017 ″», added the City Council of Vila Real.
The Vila Reale municipal executive also pointed out that «the municipality of VRSA thus ceases to accumulate debt, with some of the main changes, attested by the FAM, having focused on reducing the supply of goods and services, reorganizing the municipal structure and rationalizing personnel expenses'.
«In just one year, the municipality of Vila Real de Santo António reduced its expenditure by around five million euros. These numbers are clearly positive and demonstrate that the results of the implementation of the Budget Balance Program, whose mission is to recover the municipal accounts, is producing very satisfactory results», said Conceição Cabrita, president of the Chamber of VRSA.
«The receipt of the third tranche of the FAM is, in fact, a vote of confidence regarding the effort that has been developed by this executive to turn around a municipality that was in a situation of rupture and is now beginning to balance itself in a way unequivocal,” added the mayor.
According to the Municipal Support Fund, «and taking into account the analysis of budget execution until the third quarter of 2018, the total expenditure of the municipality registered a decrease of 18,1% compared to forecasts, “mirroring a budget consolidation effort ” and a “positive evolution of balances”».
The Chamber also pointed out that the "expense rationalization plan" also contributed to these results, which materialized in the even more careful management of social support and benefits paid to institutions, in the profound review of the events policy and in the effective reduction of financial costs and losses'.
"These are just the first numbers that prove that this executive's path of budgetary rigor is yielding results and consolidating a new form of governance that has known how to find new solutions to renegotiate the debt contracted and inherited", assured Conceição Cabrita.
Photos: Fabiana Saboya
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