"We are not afraid," says ballot box manufacturer

Barcelona.- The lawsuit against the Catalan Government for opening a public tender for the supply of ballot boxes for the referendum is not scaring off manufacturers. The head of projects of Plastic Express, one of the two companies that is bidding, said on Friday that they are "not afraid". In comments to the CNA, Andreu Marqués said that it is "absolutely non-sense" to start a judicial case against the Government, especially "in a democracy".

"We are a private company, we work for whichever client comes to us. If in this case the client is the Government of Catalonia, we will work for them. If the Government of Valencia comes to us, we will as well, and so we will do if it is the Government of Madrid", he insisted.

Andreu Marqués pointed out that they don't ask why clients want their ballot boxes for. "They might be used in elections, in public consultations, they might keep it in a wardrobe. We manufacture a product for a client, and we don't meddle on why do they want it for", he added.  

Two companies are bidding to supply the ballot boxes for the referendum: Plastic Express S.A. and UTE Espai World S.L i Suministros Integrales Futbida S.L., both from Barcelona. The Spanish Prosecutor filed a complaint against the Minister of Government, Meritxell Borràs, and the Secretary General, Francesc Esteve, for starting the administrative process to buy the ballot boxes. The prosecutor argued that the ballot boxes will be used in an "illegal referendum" and therefore beginning the process to purchase them is against the Spanish Constitutional Court's rulings that ban such a vote. Borràs and Esteve are accused of perversion of justice, disobedience and embezzlement.