Judicial ruling agrees with the Municipality of Cuenca, which dismissed the first head of the Fire Department

Cuenca

The first chief of the Cuenca Fire Department, Patricio Lucero, left his post once Judge María García declared the protection action that he filed inadmissible, considering that the Municipality of Cuenca violated his rights by dismissing him from office.

The decision, this Friday afternoon, January 14, is based on a current ordinance that provides that the position lasts five years. When the precautionary measure is annulled, Jorge Torres remains as the new J1 or first boss, as ordered by Mayor Pedro Palacios in December 2021.

In the protection action filed last week, Patricio Lucero’s lawyers argued that he should remain in office until 2024, based on a resolution of the National Secretariat for Risk Management and the Organic Code of Citizen Security and Public Order Entities. (Coescop). In both, the time of the first boss was extended.

Controversy in Cuenca over appointment of interim head of the Fire Department

But in one of her motivations, the judge argued that the aforementioned regulations were issued after the ordinance, so her job stability was not affected.

They also stated that Lucero was unprotected because he is a person with a physical disability and is part of a vulnerable group.

From this, the judge replied that it is an unfounded element, because at the time of his possession in 2016 he also had this condition originating from his firefighter work. For that reason, the precautionary measure was also revoked and he had to leave the office.

After this ruling, Lucero’s defense attorney, Juan Francisco Delgado, announced that he will appeal the decision before the Provincial Court of Justice.

Patricio Lucero resumes his position as first chief of the Cuenca Fire Department; for protection action there will be a hearing next January

After this legal action, Captain Jorge Patricio Torres assumed the leadership of the Cuenca Fire Department. He had been appointed interim chief on December 21 after the dismissal of Lucero by Mayor Palacios. The latter said that day that after reviewing the regulations he saw that Lucero had already completed his five-year term as stipulated by current legislation.

Torres arrived at fire station No. 3, thanked his colleagues for their support and highlighted the important step that the measure has allowed volunteer firefighters to take.

“We are here to work for you, for us, to make this institution recover what we once were, a local, national and international benchmark. I simply hope that each of you do your best, which we have always been doing. Although it is true in this last period we have seen ourselves a little subdued, effectively because they have been alienating us, dividing us, we are not going to allow that anymore,” Torres told his colleagues in a short and improvised speech as the first fire chief.

Before Torres legally took over as head of the Cuenca Fire Department, other members of the institution expressed themselves in favor of a change in the direction of this entity.

“There is a little more peace of mind within volunteering with this decision, because the institution always needs alternation. Alternation is fundamental in all public institutions; public institutions require new ideas, new projects, new efforts, therefore, new people”, said Major Felipe Camacho. (I)