Colonel José María Tienda Serrano should be returned as head of the Provincial Command of the Civil Guard in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, according to a judgment of the Central Contentious-Administrative Court number 7 of Madrid, where magistrate-judge Eduardo Ángel Perdiguero argued that the resolution signed by Secretary of State for Security Rafael Pérez Ruiz on March 8 of this year, where the dismissal was ordered, lacked enough enthusiasm so that the command of the Armed Institute can defend itself.
The sentence was signed on October 26, and it is not final because an appeal can be filed against it. in the same judicial body within fifteen days after notification to the parties. In this way, Tenerife produces a case similar to that of Civil Guard colonel Diego Pérez de los Cobos, who was dismissed from the Madrid Command Headquarters for not informing the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, of a judicial investigation to determine whether the 8-M demonstration in Madrid may have contributed to the spread of COVID-19. The Supreme Court decided three years later that Pérez de los Cobos should return to the position of head of the command, which happened last July.
The dismissal of Colonel José María Tienda from his position as head of the command took place amid two corruption cases. The first is the Mediator case, where the alleged payments made by businessmen to former PSOE politicians, to an intermediary, and to Civil Guard Division General Francisco Espinosa Navas in exchange for the benefits of their commercial companies are being investigated.
The second is the so-called Cuarteles case, where a Canarian businessman, Ángel Ramón Tejera de León, is known as Mon and under the command of the Civil Guard for the many orders and concessions received by the builder for the implementation, sometimes partial or defective, repair or maintenance work of the barracks houses and facilities of the armed institute.
Colonel Tienda Serrano appeared in a conversation with General Espinosa Navas in the investigation of the Mediator case, where they talked about a “cousin.” In the absence of its confirmation, one of the suspicions of the Internal Affairs of the Civil Guard is that the two refer to Tejera de León.
In the investigation of the Barracks case, the internal affairs include the works done by the businessman Mon in the offices of the Armed Institute in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife between 2014 and 2021, most of them through direct awards. In other contracts, its competitor in the tender for the award of the work is a partner. Ángel Ramón Tejera de León is the link between two corruption cases: the Mediator case and the Cuarteles case.
However, so far, there is no evidence that José María Tienda Serrano was called to testify as an investigator on any matter.
After his dismissal on March 8, Colonel Tienda presented an appeal to the Ministry of the Interior, which was dismissed on May 25. The former head of the Civil Guard Command of Santa Cruz de Tenerife then decided to file a controversial administrative appeal. Tienda Serrano based its claim on the fact that, for its removal, the established legal procedure was not followed, there was no motivation, and there was a misuse of power.
The state attorney opposed the appeal and asked to confirm the resolution of the Ministry of the Interior, with the argument that the Head of Command is an independently appointed position “so that it can be dismissed due to the loss of confidence due to inappropriate behavior.”.
In its letter, the State Attorney’s Office said that there was “succinct motivation” in the resolution to dismiss Tienda, so the colonel has no fault. He also denied that there was a misuse of power because it was not explained what the different purpose of removing Tienda was.
Magistrate-judge Eduardo Ángel Perdiguero said that the judgment 1183/2022 of September 27 of the Supreme Court stated that “the legal framework of the Civil Guard does not prevent, but confirms, the application of our doctrine of motivation in deeds,” discretionary in general, and those that take the form of removing positions accessed through the Civil Guard’s free appointment system.
The magistrate recalled that the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court requires not only a formal motivation but that it is “vague, imprecise, or ritualistic.” In addition, he pointed out that he should “state the reasons why the personal confidence in making the position has decreased and the reasons why the conditions for the continuation of making the discretionary position are no longer fulfilled.”
The ruling recalled that in the report issued by the Human Resources Service of the General Directorate of the Civil Guard, the dismissal came from a loss of confidence due to “bad behavior.” “This general formula is not specified by the individual facts that allow the appellant to defend himself against them and, therefore, against dismissal,” the decision clarified.
Due to these circumstances, the judge determined that the resolution of the Ministry of the Interior was not motivated enough, so it must be canceled, and, in this way, supported the controversial administrative appeal made by Colonel José María Tienda Serrano.
The costs of the process are imposed by the Ministry of the Interior, based on Article 139.1 of the Law Regulating Contentious-Administrative Jurisdiction.
The Court’s ruling declared the right of Colonel José María Tienda to return to the position from which he was removed, head of the Santa Cruz de Tenerife Command, and to pay the salary differences that were not collected from the date they were made. ending.
Tienda joined the headquarters of the Provincial Command in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 2012. Before his dismissal was ordered in March, he requested a change of destination to a lower position in the category, to the Plana Mayor Zone, where he should not have been. There are no responsibilities or orders from his office, so he is completely diverted from his main activity.
Part of Colonel Tienda’s career in the Civil Guard was linked to the Helicopter Unit (UHEL), and in his eleven years as head of the Provincial Command in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, he was characterized by his discretion.
