A copper monument dedicated to Carlos Fabra is being erected in front of a new airport at public expense

This article is more than 8 years old

This article is more than 8 years old

It is the biggest white elephant in Spain – a €300,000, 24m-high statue dedicated to an infamous politician whose face will welcome people to a brand-new airport that no one uses.

The monument to Carlos Fabra, head of the newly built airport in the eastern province of Castellon and local boss of the governing People's party (PP), is being erected in the middle of a roundabout at the airport's entrance.

Although still only half built, the 20-tonne copper sculpture has provoked outrage in a country gripped by ferocious public spending cuts and massive unemployment.

The local sculptor Juan Ripollés has said one of several faces on the monument will be that of Fabra, who recently retired after 16 years as president of the provincial assembly.

"It is a homage to the origins of the airport project and to the person behind it, Carlos Fabra," he explained. "It is made up of several faces, and will include the figure of Fabra."

The bill will be paid by the public company in charge of the airport, which happens to be run by Fabra himself.

"This is proof of Fabra's megalomania," said the regional deputy Marina Albiol of the opposition United Left party.

With the newly built airport not yet in use, and questions already being raised over its viability after several airport closures in Spain, the money for the monument in effect comes out of taxpayers' pockets.

"This airport was finished 10 months ago, is not used, and owes money," said the socialist deputy Joaquim Puig.

Fabra has been at the centre of corruption allegations, with, among other things, court investigators wanting to know how he regularly appears to win Spain's El Gordo Christmas lottery – whose winning tickets are sometimes bought by people trying to launder money. He denies the allegations, which have yet to be brought to trial.

Fabra belongs to the Valencia regional branch of PP, the party of the prime minister, Mariano Rajoy. PP is mired in numerous corruption scandals.

The Valencia region also has one of the biggest budget deficits in Spain, with the regional PP government this week announcing new tax rises and spending cuts.

Austerity measures are coming into force across Spain as the economy sinks into the second part of a double-dip recession and unemployment reaches 23%.

• This article was amended on 12 January 2012 to correct the spelling of the name of Marina Albiol from Marian Albiolo.