In addition to electing the governing bodies, the General Assembly unanimously approved the Activity Plan and Budget for the year 2017, which reaffirms as its main activity the inauguration of the Sports Complex and the Park and Camping Park, restoring a prime space for well-being and leisure to the town of Caldas das Taipas and the municipality of Guimarães.
On October 14th, the General Assembly of the Taipas Turitermas CIPRL Cooperative met to elect the new governing bodies for the 2017-2019 term. The Cooperative's board will be composed of the following members: Guimarães City Council (represented by Councillor Ricardo Costa), David Ribeiro, José Maia Freitas, Sérgio Araújo, and Miguel Oliveira. The General Assembly's board, in addition to the Guimarães City Council, also includes the Caldelas Parish Council and ENATUR, while the Supervisory Board is composed of the Guimarães City Council and members Luís Sottomayor Felgueiras and José Fraga Matos.
Among other collaborators, the elected governing bodies include the Guimarães City Council and the Caldelas Parish Council, whose votes also approved the Activity Plan and Budget for 2017, reaffirming the ambition to inaugurate the multi-sports complex and the campsite, restoring a prime space for well-being and leisure to the town of Caldas das Taipas and the municipality of Guimarães.
Ricardo Costa, President of the board, took the opportunity to confront the representative of the Caldelas Parish Council, Manuel Ribeiro, regarding the statements that have been reproduced and which call into question, in a crude, unfair and false way, the good name and interests of the Cooperative and which, according to Ricardo Costa, should also be those of its political representatives.
The President of the Board emphasized that "The Caldelas Parish Council has consistently accepted the invitation to join the governing bodies of the Taipas Turitermas Cooperative. It therefore has an elected forum to collaborate in defending these interests, where it can voice its opinions on matters of concern and suggest possible improvements in the Cooperative's direction."
On the other hand, it argues that "in the last seven years, the Parish Council has never voted against any financial report, activity plan or budget; on the contrary, whenever it has spoken out, it has been to offer high praise for the work carried out."
Ricardo Costa therefore states that "it was with great surprise and displeasure that the Board noted the statements made by the Parish Council regarding the Cooperative and the vote against the investment that the City Council is making in Vila das Taipas, especially because some of them are disloyal and false," inviting the representative of the Parish Council, Manuel Ribeiro, to retract his statements.
Manuel Ribeiro justified his vote on the Budgets and Activity Reports as being in accordance with what was presented: “I never voted against because the accounts are correct and therefore there was no reason to vote against”. When asked if he agreed with the statements of the President of the Board that “The thermal baths are a police matter”, Manuel Ribeiro replied that “those statements are nonsense that will remain with whoever uttered them”.
The Cooperative's Board of Directors understands that the statements made by the representative of the Caldelas Parish Council were enlightening and that it remains, as always, available to cooperate with the parish and its political representatives in order to promote thermal tourism and the village of Taipas.
