2024-08-02 07:04:32
Henry Kronfe says that President Daniel Noboa is “lying” on several issues. He believes that the Executive-Legislative dispute is due to the proximity of the elections.
The President of the National Assembly, Henry Kronfle, responded to the “lies” of President Daniel Noboa regarding the growing relationship between the Executive and Legislative branches.
Kronfle suspects that all this animosity from the Government towards the Assembly is due to the proximity of the presidential elections and Noboa’s intentions to seek a new mandate. He recalled that, at the beginning, when urgent economic laws had to be approved or political support had to be sought for the declaration of internal armed conflict, the Assembly was an ally, but now, when the elections are approaching, it is the “enemy.”
The head of Parliament listed the “lies” that the president allegedly told on July 8 in a radio interview, in what he described as a “media war” by the Executive:
Investigation into Correa
President Noboa said that the Assembly does not want to review statements made by former President Rafael Correa in which he suggested sanctions against Ecuador for the raid on the Mexican Embassy in Quito and the capture of Jorge Glas.
The ruling National Democratic Action Party (ADN) proposed a change in the agenda to debate a motion to create a commission to investigate Correa, but it was declared inadmissible three times.
“The Assembly can only supervise public servants who are under political control during their functions and up to a year after. There is no other option. We are not protecting former President Rafael Correa,” said Kronfle. The official recommended to the Government that if it wants to take action against Correa and supervise him, it is simple: “go to the Prosecutor’s Office and file your complaint.”
Cost of basic basket
Although it is not directly within his jurisdiction, Kronfle said that the Government’s economic measures have indeed affected the cost of the basic basket of goods, contrary to what the authorities claim.
“The cost of living has increased. There is a USD 33 increase in the basic basket. In 2023 this was USD 766.33 and in 2024 it is USD 799.73. The source is the INEC,” said the head of the Assembly.
Wilman Teran trial
Regarding Noboa’s statement that the Assembly was going to save the former president of the Judicial Council, Wilman Terán, Kronfle recalled that on July 8 it was decided to continue with the impeachment trial against the former official.
Kronfle also stressed that it was the Assembly’s Plenary that had to decide, with 88 votes, to continue the trial, because the Oversight Committee did not have the votes to recommend continuing with that process. “We are in this situation for a simple reason: because Assemblyman Luis Alvarado Campi, a member of the ADN bench of the Government party, did not vote and was absent, and because of his non-vote the vote was tied and the deciding vote was cast by President Pamela Aguirre (Citizen Revolution).”
New laws
According to Kronfle, the government would be voting against laws “that are beneficial to the people” only to support the thesis that there is an opposition pact between the Citizen Revolution, Construye and the Social Christian Party.
However, he also acknowledged that on the same day that the pro-government assemblywoman Valentina Centeno “said that the Assembly wants to declare the president insane,” a law on social security was unanimously approved. That is, at the same time that the Government was talking about destabilizing attempts, the government was joining a regulation that was proposed by the PSC, through Kronfle himself.
Reforms of the popular consultation
The head of the Assembly said that the Government also lied when it said that the Occasional Commission approved a “fake” report on the reforms that arose from the popular consultation.
“The report that was approved is exactly the same as the project that President Daniel Noboa sent,” said Kronfle, who also denied that time has run out to discuss and approve this law. According to the Assembly’s secretary, the deadline to approve the reforms that emerged from the popular consultation was until July 12 and the Plenary approved them, practically without changes, on July 8 unanimously with 132 votes.
Reforms to the COIP
The Government has indicated that the Assembly did not want to approve the reforms to the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code (COIP) and that is why the president had to call for a referendum. Kronfle recalled that there were already several projects in the legislature in this regard and that they would be approved “in due time.”
However, the Government did not want them to be approved before the referendum, “in order to steal the limelight,” according to the President of the Assembly. He said, however, that not all security-related issues were included in the referendum and that the PSC had to present new proposals to complete what was left out.
Political trials
Kronfle said he had been the victim of a media attack in recent days, with posts on social media claiming that he was behind the impeachment of Chancellor Gabriela Sommerfeld.
He described it as a false insinuation and recalled that he did not sign the support for this oversight process that is promoted by Correa’s supporters due to the police raid on the Mexican Embassy in Quito on April 5, 2024. On July 1, the Oversight Commission decided to shelve two impeachments against three former ministers of former President Guillermo Lasso, which were before the Chancellor’s, due to lack of support, and the next day it qualified the request against Sommerfeld.
Kronfle said that with these requests against Lasso’s former ministers, the Government tried to delay the oversight of its own ministers. To ensure that this type of “denaturalization” does not happen again, Kronfle said that he will present a legal reform so that political trials of serving officials take priority over requests from officials who no longer hold office.
By: PRIMICIAS