The municipal group Compromís in the City Council of Castelló has denounced that the government of Begoña Carrasco has ended up paying more than 15,000 euros of public money for the song 'Castelló està llesta'. The work was withdrawn after detecting the presence of fragments from 'Magdalena Festa Plena' without authorization, with a possible violation of copyright.
The spokesperson for Compromís, Ignasi Garcia, has stated that this decision shows a contradiction in the mayor's discourse. As he indicated, when she was in opposition, she demanded to act forcefully against plagiarism and even called for taking such cases to court, whereas now, as part of the government, she has opted to pay for a work she considers irregular.
The song was part of the promotional campaign for the Magdalena festival and was intended for broadcast in various spaces and institutional actions. However, following criticism for the use of fragments from the traditional work 'Magdalena Festa Plena', the City Council withdrew both the promotional video and the musical piece from official platforms.
Compromís maintains that the delivered work did not comply with the conditions established in the municipal contract, which required an original work respectful of intellectual property regulations. According to Garcia, the administration should have verified this compliance before its dissemination and considers the situation to be a result of negligent management.
The spokesperson also criticized the municipal government's actions in response to the claims of the author of 'Magdalena Festa Plena', stating that instead of defending their rights, the executive allegedly tried to pressure him to change his stance.
Finally, Compromís has described it as serious that, after withdrawing the campaign and halting its dissemination, the council has decided to pay the full contract amount nonetheless. Garcia concluded that this is a case where the opposition's promises do not align with the decisions made by the government.
