“From April 1, we will close the playgrounds in Sector 1.” How Mayor Clotilde Armand explains a decision that may affect her in the elections: “You can’t improvise with playgrounds!”

The playgrounds in Sector 1 could be closed, Mayor Clotilde Armand said in an interview with HotNews.ro readers, because she no longer has money in the budget for maintenance. “That’s because the PSD and PNL councilors cut through an amendment almost all the money from green spaces, where the maintenance of playgrounds was also included.”

“In the same budget chapter where I have the green spaces, I also have the maintenance of the playgrounds. They left 20 million out of 200 – 250 million lei, which was in the previous mandates”, says Clotilde Armand. “With 20 million I paid the invoices from December. After paying these bills, we released the orders for January and February and now we are unable to provide even basic services such as playground maintenance. From April 1, we will also close the playgrounds, because there is nothing left in this budget chapter”, explained the USR mayor of Sector 1.

“If we cannot provide a professional service, I, as mayor, will not undertake it”

Asked what maintenance work needs to be done urgently and without which the playgrounds cannot function, the mayor says that it is about the components that deteriorate and need to be replaced:

• “The playgrounds have some mechanisms, which are constantly checked and the moment something comes loose or a part is broken, a repair team comes immediately, but with the parts that belong to the company that installed our equipment.”

• “In other words, no improvisations are made with the playgrounds. And these services that are not only non-stop, but also with some spare parts that are certified, that is, everything is professional”.

• “If we cannot provide a professional service, I, as mayor, will not assume that I will be lucky and that game will not be broken.”

”I mean obviously some might say ok, do an improvisation with the ADP staff and put a screw in there that will work. We don’t do that, if they are not professionally maintained and repaired, we close them down,” explained Clotilde Armand.

“We still have electricity because we prayed to our service provider”

The mayor says that he presented the problem to the councilors from the opposition, but they did not agree with the proposed budget rectification.

“We have already come five or six times with a budget amendment, which would correct the budget, so that it becomes legal. And they still don’t vote. In the town hall we no longer have elevators, we no longer have cleaning, we no longer have security, we still have electricity because we prayed to the one who provides us the service”, concluded the mayor Clotilde Armand.

The full interview with Clotilde Armand will be published on Friday by HotNews.ro.