The president of the Association of State Tax Inspectors, Ana de la Herrán, warned this Thursday that the country is going through an "institutional deterioration" which, in her view, is no longer limited to a specific sector of the administrations, but extends to numerous areas affected by "abandonment and neglect".
During the opening of the XXXVI Congress of State Tax Inspectors, which is taking place these days in Toledo, De la Herrán focused on the responsibility of those who manage public services. "The problem is not in the trains, but in the people who direct, organize and manage," she pointed out, linking her denunciation to the rail tragedy that has shaken the country.
In her speech, the president of the Association expressed her condolences for the victims of the accident in Toledo and especially remembered the tax inspector and "friend of many," Antonio Montero, who died in the disaster when he was traveling on one of the trains involved. "Just a moment ago we were burying our compatriots who had suffered in Adamuz and today we have this," she recalled, underscoring the social shock generated by these events.
De la Herrán insisted that there is "an evident institutional deterioration" that reaches too many areas and stressed that "the tax administration, I think is something already very evident too, is also a victim of that deterioration". In her view, this situation undermines the functioning of public services and citizens' trust in institutions.
Facing this scenario, the president defended that the work of tax inspectors only makes sense if it is accompanied by proper management of public resources. "We, who are public servants, appeal to our sense of duty," she emphasized, denouncing that the profession is increasingly being "beaten up, despised, trampled on and spat upon".
De la Herrán concluded by lamenting the lack of institutional support for her group. "It is very hard to find ourselves alone in the defense because, colleagues, in that defense we have been alone. It is hard to believe," she stated, calling for greater support and recognition of the role of inspectors in the tax system.