Government dismisses civil service director general over entrance exam 'chaos'

The Catalan government dismissed civil service director general Marta Martorell Camps on Tuesday over the entry exam "chaos" as was first reported by Ara newspaper and confirmed by the Catalan News Agency (ACN). 

Martorell Camps, the former Esquerra Republicana mayor of Tiana, a small town on the Maresme coast north of Barcelona, had only been in the position for three and a half months after being forced out of the local council following a motion of no confidence.

This comes after this Saturday a total of 13,581 civil service aspirants attempted to take the entrance exams but many were faced with delays, an insufficient number of tests, privacy violations, and other incidents.

Some admissions tests ended up canceled, prompting unions and the opposition to call for accountability. 

The authorities initially blamed these disruptions on Cegos, the outsourcing company that had been tasked with organizing the entrance exams, with civil service secretary Alícia Correa suggesting some tests could be rescheduled. 

The government's legal services are studying how to terminate the contracts with the company.

Spokesperson for the executive, Patrícia Plaja, said on Tuesday that the administration wants to investigate the events so that the company in question, Cegos, "does not shirk" its responsibilities.

The IAC-CATAC union has called for the resignation of presidency minister Laura Vilagrà, as this is the department which the civil service falls under. The government has so far ruled out sacking the minister. 

Vilagrà will appear in parliament to explain the irregularities of the case on a date yet to be determined.

Anna Maria Molina, new appointment

The Catalan government has appointed Anna Maria Molina as the civil service director general replacement. 

With a degree in law and a diploma in labor relations, Molina has held several positions in the administration and, recently, she has served as deputy director general of analysis and strategic planning, which reports to the civil service.

She has worked in the public sector since 2005 and has previously been in teams in the health and presidency departments.