Laurence Dollimore
THE fallout from the Gibraltar border ‘incident’ which saw a Spanish officer drive an official car onto the territory continues.
Now the mayor of El Burgo, Jose Joaquin Garcia (Izquierda Unida), who gave the officer permission for his trip, has been urged to resign.
His PSOE rival, Marilo Narvaez, demanded his resignation letter, saying he hopes he presents it ‘without anyone asking for it.’
“It is the only way for him to assume responsibility and avoid, as much as possible, the bad image his reckless decision has brought to our people,” Narvaez said.
He added that his conduct was ‘completely unacceptable’.
It comes after Garcia gave the green light for the head of the town’s Proteccion Civil to take three of his colleagues to Gibraltar to buy some treats, including butter, cheese and chocolate.
But when Jesus Manuel Narvaez drove his work mates onto the British territory on Sunday, he was not stopped by the Spanish or UK border controls.
“I wanted, in some way, to motivate my colleagues,” he told press, “to thank them for their dedication.
“We didn’t know you couldn’t enter Gibraltar with an official vehicle.
“If they had told us it couldn’t be done, we would have turned around, parked in La Linea and changed our clothes and entered, but no one told us anything.”
When the vehicle parked in Governor’s Street, people began to take pictures.
“A couple of police approached us and told us we couldn’t have an official car and took us to the police station,” added Narvaez, “they treated us well.”
They were questioned before being returned to the border.
The footage of the car on the Rock incensed Chief Minister Fabian Picardo.
“The incident today whereby Spanish ‘Proteccion Civil’ officers have not been stopped when driving across our border is more than just concerning,” the newly re-elected leader wrote in a statement.
“I am asking all relevant bodies to explain to me how on earth this has happened and to ensure it does not happen again.”
He added: “This is frankly not acceptable.
“Our systems have failed today and they must not fail again. Someone must take responsibility for this failure.”
He has since said he is not treating the incident as a ‘diplomatic’ issue.
