The President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso, under threat of impeachment in the National Assembly

In the National Assembly, Correísmo and its allies anticipate that the report that will be presented by the occasional commission that investigates alleged corruption in public companies would recommend to the plenary session that it initiate a political trial against the President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso.

The debate and investigation on this case took a turn after the complaint filed on February 13 by the digital portal The postabout alleged contributions of drug trafficking to the presidential campaign of Guillermo Lasso, based on an audio leak resulting from an intelligence investigation by the National Police that would implicate Rubén Cherres, who would be linked to the Albanian mafia and would have had constant dialogues and agreements with the brother-in-law of the first president, Danilo Carrera.

Complaint by the digital media ‘La Posta’ reaches the National Assembly

The legislators discuss whether the complaint about the alleged contamination of the campaign with drug trafficking is part of the resolution that the National Assembly approved, with 94 votes, on January 18, when it integrated the occasional commission for truth, justice and the fight against corruption in the case called The Great Godfather.

The possibility of impeachment of the President of the Republic is established in article 129 of the Constitution, where it is stated that the National Assembly may proceed to political prosecution at the request of at least one third of its members (46 votes), for crimes against State security; for crimes of extortion, bribery, embezzlement or illicit enrichment; or for crimes of genocide, torture, forced disappearance of persons, kidnapping or homicide for political or conscience reasons.

Legislator Mireya Pazmiño, separated from the Pachakutik bench and that today he acts together with correísmo, he anticipated that the complaint filed about drug trafficking contributions in Guillermo Lasso’s campaign will be part of the report that the occasional commission will present on February 23.

The report, he added, is aimed at recommending a constitutional solution to the country and this could be a political trial of the President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso, since “there are plenty of indications that the president has received a million and a half from drug trafficking; In addition, to pay for those favors that he received from drug trafficking, various authorities were placed in strategic places so that all the drug trafficking business could pass through; here it is not only corruption of public companies, and this is very delicate, ”he stressed.

Pazmiño explained that the issue for which the commission was formed was “the great godfather,” who is President Guillermo Lasso’s brother-in-law, and in this possible link to drug trafficking they involve the president’s brother-in-law, he said.

Here the way out is constitutional and a possible impeachment of President Guillermo Lasso, and the commission’s non-binding report would go to the plenary session of the National Assembly and immediately to the Constitutional Court, explained Pazmiño, who assured that Pachakutik will not step aside , which will give an outlet to all Ecuadorians.

However, assemblyman Mario Ruiz, from the Pachakutik bench, He said that the block to which he belongs will not lend himself to the game that Correísmo wants to play, a cross death and anticipate elections to let President Guillermo Lasso govern alone for six months by decree.

Ruiz revealed that the bench met the previous Friday and that they will demand transparency not only from this government, since it is striking that the commission investigating the case of The Great Godfather has not wanted to investigate corruption since its inception, there are indications that this corruption started from 2016.

For the government legislator Juan Fernando Flores, of the National Accord Bank (BAN), the occasional commission that started for one topic can now become a commission for all topics; “It is not the commission of justice and truth in the conjuncture, but the commission of justice and truth under a parameter that was established by the plenary session of the Assembly, and it will not be uncommon for that guideline to be violated,” he warned.

Regarding the complaint about the alleged financing of drug trafficking, he commented that it would have to be established in depth what are the elements of an alleged responsibility of actors and who would have participated in it, but that this is the responsibility of the State Attorney General’s Office and if the case before the National Electoral Council and the Electoral Dispute Tribunal.

He insisted that it is not up to the Assembly to fulfill the role of prosecutor and judge. “Unfortunately, some assembly members believe that we, as the first function of the State, replace the other functions, and if a complaint was filed, it will have to be investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office,” he stressed.

Correista Ferdinan Álvarez, from the Union for Hope (UNES) bench, He stated that from the evidence presented and the investigation process that has been carried out up to now, political responsibility does reach high government levels, since President Guillermo Lasso was aware of it since he began his term and knowing that he hid a previous investigation that had related to illegal activities such as drug trafficking.

He insisted that Guillermo Lasso’s responsibility, in this case, is personal, having learned that acts of corruption were committed and that these people were also involved in acts of drug trafficking.

Regarding the conduct of the president, there is criminal responsibility in this case, and regarding the political responsibility of President Guillermo Lasso, it is in accordance with the facts and the commission will issue the final report, affirmed the representative of Guayas for correísmo.

He said that the president can make a political decision: to step aside or in turn activate the cross death and advance the elections.

Wilma Andrade, from the Democratic Left, maintained that the complaint filed by the digital portal The post it has to be contrasted and evaluated more broadly. You have to look at which of the information delivered directly implicates the President of the Republic. And “from what I heard that is not manifested, what is evident is that there has been influence peddling that is harmful to democracy and the circle close to the president,” he added.

What would have to be expanded is the information on the alleged contribution of more than 1 million dollars to the electoral campaign, there is a prohibition on that established in the Code of Democracy and that could not happen.

That investigation must be expanded, but the Assembly has its limitations because its work is political control, but it is the Prosecutor’s Office that must do that work.

The Social Christian legislator Pedro Zapata, a member of the occasional commission, he was more cautious when pointing out that the commission’s report must adhere to the resolution of the plenary session of the Assembly, which is to investigate the case of El Gran Padrino; although he said that the report will have some edges, even of a judicial nature, and the information presented by the digital portal can be referred to the Prosecutor’s Office. And in the case of alleged drug trafficking, the investigation corresponds to the Prosecutor’s Office. (YO)