It will soon be a month since the new municipal administration and other elected authorities started their work. As expected, the injection of optimism among the citizens is evident. Maybe we needed him that much. Maybe we Guayaquileños are waiting too long or maybe our resigned spirit welcomes any minimal hope of change.

What no one can deny is that Mayor Aquiles Álvarez has a work plan that considers many of the citizens’ demands. You have to go in parts. Let’s start with the first message that the mayor sends us on his first working day, his entry: 06:30. I believe that this is a sign of haste, of urgency, of everything that must be done to restore the face of the city to Guayaquil. Those of us who stand out as early risers feel identified with this somewhat unusual quality in contexts like ours, where everything is left for later, where responsibilities are settled at the last minute.

Main city streets have long been dangerous zones for both pedestrians and drivers. There is no road in the urban skyline without potholes or craters that make traffic difficult. It will never be known for sure why it took so long to repair them. Why have they made people so uncomfortable and ignored hundreds of requests regarding this obvious reality? First of all, because it is common for municipalities to be in charge of something as basic as road maintenance. And I say this because in less than fifteen days we have noticed an evident shift in road rehabilitation. The organization of the Directorate of Public Works offers promising management, it is surprising that common sense prevails in the decisions on road closures and because asphalt works were also carried out on the last May holidays: the goal was to facilitate transit and daily mobility.

In recent weeks, the visible closeness of the mayor to social network users has been the most commented on. A point in his favor, since many of the citizens’ complaints are currently being amplified in virtual spaces. Their direct interaction and immediate attention restore the forgotten leadership to the community. Complaints once again emphasize the neglect of our city. Just looking at the photos shows how common the neglect of most sectors of Guayaquil was. If we start to review the many complaints from citizens, they are about the same thing: trash on the streets, abandoned parks, roads that are difficult to access due to asphalt problems, blocks taken over due to commercial informality or simple structural abandonment.

My illusion goes hand in hand with culture. How wonderful to discover that public spaces will be stages for the performance of artistic programs and that the main interest of the City Public Tourist Enterprise is the promotion of the “book by book” fair, among other fronts that strive to activate and promote the tourist circuit. . We are full of hope and confidence in the reconstruction announced by the regional division project of our port. Without a doubt, Guayaquil awaits. And a lot of it. (OR)