2024-08-04 11:59:53
The Plenary of the Assembly, with 128 affirmative votes, censured Xavier Muñoz, former member of the Council of the Judiciary (CJ), as a consequence of the political prosecution followed by the legislator Jorge Peñafiel, for failure to fulfill his duties, by forming a majority together with Maribel Barreno and the former president of the organization, Wilman Terán, through which the votes of this collegiate body were manipulated, in the decision-making process. The censure disqualifies him from holding public office for two years.
Jorge Peñafiel, in his capacity as interpellant, stressed that this impeachment was filed before the acts of corruption of the former members of the CJ were known. Regarding the manipulation of the votes, he reiterated that the rights of former judge Walter Macías were violated, by illegally suspending him from his duties, with two affirmative votes, against two abstentions and the deciding vote of Dr. Terán, when this applies in the case of a tie between positive and negative votes, not with abstentions.
Regarding the extension of judges’ terms, Peñafiel said that the decision to extend the terms of the magistrates of the National Court was taken illegally and that Dr. Muñoz also participated in it. Added to this were the actions related to the call for the selection of national judges and associate judges, which were characterized by a lack of transparency, according to the reports of the oversight committees. All of this constitutes a failure to fulfill duties, he asserts.
Jorge Peñafiel insisted that the evidence presented demonstrated the formation of a majority aimed at destroying the judicial system and manipulating the decisions of the administrative and disciplinary body of the Judicial Branch. Therefore, he considers it necessary to sanction this conduct by censuring attorney Muñoz.
Meanwhile, the former official under trial, Xavier Muñoz, despite having been duly summoned as required by law, did not appear to exercise his right to defense.
During the debate, in which seven legislators participated, they expressed surprise at the power that former judge Walter Macías would have, to the point that a political trial is being proposed in his defense. They also expressed their annoyance at the absence of Xavier Muñoz, who is allegedly under pressure from the Prosecutor’s Office to keep quiet, having accepted effective cooperation in the case against him for obstruction of justice.