“I was paying €300 in rent for my house every month until the landlord told me that the apartment was already owned by the bank and that I didn’t need to pay him more.” In a calm but tired voice, Juan AlbaCordoba from … He is 81 years old, and he remembers the moment when the nightmare began that left him on Tuesday without his home in the Levante neighborhood.
For a decade, this former chef – who worked in famous establishments such as El Siena, La Almudena or Los Berengiles – lived peacefully in a small building converted into a house in the city. Platero Sanchez de Luque Street. He rented it without knowing it was facing foreclosure. “I moved after I was kicked out of my home, and I had nowhere to go. An acquaintance of mine offered me that apartment, and I was thrilled. I paid what I could, 300 euros per month».
The eviction, carried out by an investment fund after an arduous legal battle, was not directed against him directly, but it was Juan who suffered the consequences. “with me Pension of 825 euros I can’t afford normal rent. I’m looking, but the cheapest I’ve seen is 600 euros. Buying is impossible,” he admits with a shrug.
From the Association of Families in Need (Anfan), which is accompanying his case, its president, Rafael Cedres, expressed his regret at the insensitivity of the system. “Juan came to see us in October last year. He is a person with Certificate of weaknessBut the court ignored this. We do not understand how such an evacuation can be carried out. Now she has a roof over her head thanks to a friend’s solidarity, and we’ll administer rental assistance once they’re out again. “Juan will not spend a single day on the street,” Cedris explains.
Juan himself tells it humbly: “I have people who help me. Now I live in a room and pay 300 euros. Social services told me that if I found a rental, they could 80% coverage. “I am on the Femcorsa waiting list for an apartment, but at the moment this does not seem to apply to me.”
“I shut myself down”
Despite everything, he does not hold a grudge. “Personally, I don’t hate anyone. All this It was a nightmareI had a very bad time. Since I knew they were going to expel me, I didn’t eat, I shut myself in. I only found a few Joy in the gym. “Sports encouraged me, but when I returned home I thought about staying on the street and the world fell on me.”
On the day of the evacuation, Juan was not alone. through tears, He is reunited with his two sons And three grandchildren, whom he had not seen for thirty years. “Yesterday they came there and spoke to Rafael. It was very emotional. They didn’t dare come, but they eventually showed up. “This gave me strength.”
Nearly 82 years old, this man who started working when he was 14 in Barcelona and has dedicated his life to the kitchen, clings to hope that management will find a solution. The final solution. “I just want a quiet place to live out my final years. “I don’t ask for anything more,” he says.
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