Manilva Town Hall opened a public call today, 19 March 2026, to fill the post of head of the Local Police by free appointment (libre designación), following the approval of the terms by mayoral decree.
The call, internal and urgent in nature, sets a deadline of three working days for the submission of applications, owing to the imminent retirement of the current head of the force, Mateo Collado .
An official process that follows a prior announcement
The opening of this procedure comes after the Town Hall itself publicly announced on 2 March that Javier González will be the new head of the Local Police, at an event also attended by the mayor, Mario Jiménez, and the current head of the Local Police.
This is striking, as the announcement of the future appointee was made before the terms were made public and the official selection process was opened, which has now been formally launched.
Although the chosen system, free appointment, allows the mayor’s office to choose the candidate it considers most suitable, the terms include principles such as merit, ability, equality and publicity, which makes the call a formality devoid of value and one which, despite Javier González’s undeniable ability and merits, raises serious doubts about the legality of the procedure.
The procedure comes against a background of recent changes at the head of the force. On 8 January 2026, Mateo Collado was appointed head of the Local Police following the retirement of Juan Montero.
Just two months later, the Town Hall is starting a new process to appoint his replacement, which means another change within a short period in the police command structure.
The call is aimed exclusively at serving Local Police officers in Manilva. Applicants must submit, among other documents, a project for improving the department, which will be assessed together with their professional experience and a personal interview.
The final decision will rest with the mayor’s office, which may appoint the candidate it considers most suitable for the post, although, given the press release issued a few weeks ago, the outcome appears to have been decided already.
Anyone still interested can access the call document published today on the electronic office: https://manilva.sedelectronica.es/preview-document/671d29a0-3d73-4dc5-9807-059a6f4a1fb3/
