Many people talk about independence as though it is the destination.
It isn’t.
It is the starting line.
Winning a vote, securing legal approval, defining boundaries, agreeing finances and creating a new municipality would be a historic achievement.
But that is only the first mountain.
The second mountain is much harder.
Building a municipality that works.
Providing better services.
Delivering transparent government.
Balancing budgets.
Investing fairly across every community.
Being accountable to residents.
And never becoming the very thing we once criticised.
Independence does not magically fix roads.
It does not automatically improve schools.
It does not instantly solve waste collection, healthcare access, infrastructure deficits or decades of neglect.
People still have to make decisions.
Budgets still have to be balanced.
Priorities still have to be set.
Difficult choices still have to be made.
The real challenge is ensuring that a future Orihuela Costa never develops the same habits that have frustrated residents for so many years.
No favouritism.
No excuses.
No forgotten neighbourhoods.
No “them and us.”
No promises made at election time and forgotten afterwards.
If independence ever comes, residents will rightly expect something better.
Not perfection.
But better.
Because the purpose of independence is not simply changing the name above the town hall door.
It is creating a government that is closer, fairer, more transparent and more responsive to the people it serves.
That is why the journey does not end when the gate opens.
The gate simply leads to the next mountain.
And perhaps the most important lesson of all is this:
Our generation may open the door. The next generation must build the future.
The vote opens the gate. The journey continues.
A better Orihuela Costa is possible — but only if we are prepared to accept the responsibility that comes with it.
Peter Houghton, Author Political Activist
