The decision comes after the city council, just three months before the celebration, imposed a new association for the organization of the festivities. The former president of the committee has expressed deep disappointment, stating that "a public administration cannot act like this".
The conflict began a couple of months ago when the committee tried to contact the city council to start preparations and was met with evasiveness. According to the former president, this situation was unusual in their seven years of experience. Tensions escalated when, unexpectedly, a new association appeared, presenting its candidacy to organize the events, a move that the outgoing committee believes was "absolutely confirmed" to have been planned.
“"We are disappointed because a public administration cannot act like this."
The former president recounted how they learned about the other association's candidacy at a meeting called "from a Sunday to a Monday" by the district councilor. He affirmed that everything was orchestrated from the beginning, feeling that information had been withheld until the administration deemed it appropriate. This maneuver has been described by the committee as a "stab in the back," as they believe they were undermined.
A festival councilor attempted to mediate the conflict by proposing that both associations work together. However, the outgoing committee flatly rejected this possibility, citing the disloyalty of the other association. "They should have approached us to say 'hey, we want to participate,' but no, they went behind our backs to present a candidacy," lamented the former president.
“"We don't work with people like that, we don't work."
Currently, the city council has two program proposals for the festivals: that of the outgoing committee and that of the new association. The former president has announced that they will make their proposal public so that citizens can see their work and prevent the new organization from appropriating their ideas. Despite their resignation, they do not rule out future actions, depending on how events unfold.
Despite the controversy, the former president emphasized that the most important aspect is the religious festivity. "As long as the virgin is the protagonist, the essence will not be lost," he assured. His concern focuses on the management of popular events, as the lack of time to seek resources and sponsorships just two months before the event represents an additional problem for the new organization.
