The popular Elisa Pérez de Siles claimed in the plenary session that socialist councillors earned 1,000 euros for attending the sessions. PSOE denied this and stated the actual allowance is 750 euros gross.
The extraordinary plenary session of the Málaga City Council, convened this Thursday to approve the moratorium on tourist apartments and discuss the state of the city, led to a tense exchange of accusations between PP and PSOE regarding the money councillors receive for attending the sessions. The popular Elisa Pérez de Siles stated the figure of “1,000 euros per head,” referring to the socialist councillors without exclusive dedication. The socialist Mariano Ruiz Araujo immediately responded, denying the accusation and providing the official data.
This is how Málaga councillors are compensated
The remuneration system of the City Council includes three regimes. The first is exclusive dedication, which is received by the mayor, spokespersons, and councillors with delegations; their salaries range from 62,874.70 euros gross annually for an opposition councillor to 87,325.14 for the mayor. The second is partial dedication, at 80% or 50% of those amounts depending on the workday. The third, which has caused the controversy, is attendance at collegiate bodies: those who do not have exclusive or partial dedication receive an allowance for each session they attend.
According to data provided by the City Council, the allowances are set at 500 euros for ordinary plenary sessions, 250 euros for extraordinary plenary sessions, and 250 euros for plenary commissions. This Thursday, two extraordinary plenary sessions were held (one for the state of the city debate and one for the tourist moratorium) and a Urban Planning commission. In total, 750 euros gross, not 1,000 as claimed by the PP councillor.
“It’s not 1,000 euros, it’s 750 euros gross, and in our group, there is only one councillor who receives allowances,” clarified Ruiz Araujo.
Only one socialist councillor without exclusive dedication
The real disagreement was not just about the figure, but about who it affected. Pérez de Siles spoke in general terms about “their non-exclusive dedications,” implying that a good part of the socialist group was pocketing those allowances. Ruiz Araujo requested the floor for clarification and explained that in the municipal socialist group there is only one councillor without exclusive dedication: Jorge Quero, an employee of the Municipal Transport Company (EMT). Quero combines his job at the EMT with his role as a councillor and, therefore, receives the allowance for attendance instead of a fixed salary. The rest of the group, Ruiz Araujo insisted, “receives a fixed salary.”
PP, for its part, maintained its position and accused PSOE of forcing the extraordinary plenary session to allow their councillors to “earn more.” A claim that the socialists labelled as “false and malicious.” The discussion escalated until the mayor, Francisco de la Torre, had to intervene to calm the tensions and return to the agenda.
What does it mean for the average Málaga citizen?
Beyond the political squabble, the controversy makes it clear that the municipal remuneration system is complex and often misinterpreted. For the average citizen, the question is whether these allowances are an excessive expense or a reasonable mechanism for councillors who maintain their private employment to dedicate time to local politics. In Málaga, with 31 councillors, only a minority (those without exclusive dedication) receive payment for attendance. The rest receive a fixed annual salary, regardless of the number of plenaries.
The next ordinary plenary session, scheduled for the end of the month, will again generate allowances of 500 euros for those attending without exclusive dedication. And, if the atmosphere remains so heated, perhaps also some reproaches.
You may also like
