The difficult independence of Catalan telecom graduates

BarcelonaThey have tried twice in the first decade of this century, without success, and this is the third time that the Official College of Telecommunications Graduates and Technical Engineers of Catalonia (COETTC) wants to separate from the state entity of which it is a part, the Official College of Telecommunications Graduates and Engineers (COITT). However, although the COETT assembly approved the segregation more than a year ago, the fact is that the process is not moving forward.

On April 23, 2024 (Saint George's Day), the voting process by the Catalan members ended, and the segregation was approved with the following requirements: that more than half of the members of the group vote and that at least two-thirds of those who voted be in favor. According to the dean of the COETTC, Jordi Farré, participation, despite the obstacles put up by the Spanish organization, exceeded 50%, and support for segregation reached almost 90% of voters.

However, for now, the new Catalan school segregated from the Spanish school has not been able to register because the decree establishing it has not been published. Farré complains about the lack of support they have received from the Catalan government to expedite the process. "The Catalan administration is not helping," he tells ARA. And, in fact, he has already contacted the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, and the Minister for Digital Transformation and Public Service, Óscar López, but the process is not moving forward.

The Catalan government, however, claims that it is not because they are not supporting the segregation of the Catalan school from the Spanish language. "The Directorate General of Law, Legal Entities, and Mediation has always responded to all requests for meetings made by representatives of the Catalan branch of the COITT with successive directors general to address their demands," assure sources from the Catalan government, who add that "the branch has always been answered in accordance with current legislation and the powers of the Generalitat regarding professional associations."

According to these same sources, the creation of the Catalan association could only be processed if the Spanish government publishes the royal decree establishing it. "After the Spanish government approves the segregation of the state association through the corresponding royal decree, the Generalitat of Catalonia may begin the process of creating the Catalan association, in accordance with Article 37 of Law 7/2006, of May 31," these sources from the Catalan government point out.

Thus, Salvador Illa's administration leaves the decision in the hands of the Spanish government. "The Department of Justice and Democratic Quality can only manage the process in accordance with current regulations; once the royal decree approving the segregation of the College of Technical Telecommunications Engineers is approved, there will be no legal impediment to processing the decree creating the College of Technical Telecommunications Engineers."

In fact, the Catalan demarcation has already asked the ministry to publish the royal decree that would initiate the procedure. In a letter sent to the minister on May 25, it was explained that on June 3 of last year, the ministry had been asked to publish the royal decree, explaining that it had been approved at the assembly on April 23 with the participation of 56% of the members and with the support of 90% of those who voted for the decree. The request for the publication of the royal decree was reiterated in November 2024.

The dean president of the demarcation, Jordi Farré, complains about the slowness of the administrations in processing his request. But he also complains about the inaction of the state college. Farré explains that the statutes of the COITT (state college) establish that if a territorial demarcation decides to secede, it must notify the ministry so that the royal decree can be published. However, a modification was introduced to the statutes by a ruling from the Council of State, which establishes that the board of the Spanish college must vote in an extraordinary meeting that has not been called. For the Catalan college, this last procedure should not be carried out because, at the time, the COITT assembly did not vote on this modification of the statutes.

Withholding of income

Furthermore, for the COETTC, the Spanish association should provide the resources for its separation, as established in the organization's statutes. However, on the contrary, not only have the resources not been provided, but, according to the dean of the COETTC, the COITT assembly decided not to return the 2023 tax collection to the Catalan district, which at the time further encouraged the Catalan members to promote its separation from the state entity.