The Guatemalan Congress ignores the party of the president-elect

The Congress of Guatemala ignored this Wednesday the bench of the Seed Movement, the president-elect, Bernardo Arevalo de Leonby order of a criminal judge.

The five representatives of the Seed Movement, including Arévalo de León, were declared as “independents”, due to the decision of the board of directors of the Guatemalan legislature, chaired by Shirley Rivera, deputy from the official Vamos party.

The measure of Congress obeys a criminal order, issued on July 12, by criminal judge Fredy Orellana, accused of undermining justice and corruption by the United States Department of State.

“They used an anomalous procedure”, denounced the elected deputy of Semilla Andrea Reyes, who considered that the decision to ignore the bench of her party had to be put to a vote among the 160 congressmen.

The president of Congress, Shirley Rivera, belongs to the Vamos party, of the current president, Alejandro Giammattei, who promised a transition of power on Tuesday “orderly”.

The provisional suspension of the Arévalo de León party obeys an order issued by criminal judge Fredy Orellana, on July 12, for an alleged case of false signatures during its creation in 2018.

Since progressive academic Arévalo de León advanced to the presidential runoff in the July 25 elections, the Guatemalan Public Ministry (Prosecutor’s Office) has launched a criminal prosecution against the Seed Movement.

Last Monday, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal endorsed the electoral results that certify the triumph of Arévalo de León, however the measure was overshadowed by the suspension of the same Semilla court, endorsed by Judge Orellana.

In the opinion of experts, the party should not be suspended by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal since the law prohibits this measure while the electoral process is in force, which officially ends on October 31.

Different international actors, such as the United States Department of State and the Organization of American States (OAS), have condemned the interference against the electoral process and the popular will expressed at the polls in Guatemala.

In the elections held on June 25, the Semilla party won 23 seats, making them the third largest parliamentary force for the next legislature.

On January 14, Arévalo de León must assume the presidency of the country for the period 2024-2028, replacing the current president, Giammattei.

Source: EFE