by the El Reportero‘s wire services
The president of Guatemala, Bernardo Arévalo de León, and the attorney general, Consuelo Porras, are involved in a new episode of confrontation after the president stated that the official “refuses to comply with the law.”
“I do not have any personal conflict with the prosecutor. She simply refuses to comply with the law that establishes that she has to coordinate with the President of the Republic in meetings of ministers,” Arévalo said at a press conference on Monday.
Likewise, he alluded to Porras’ actions “in the past.” “So, those will be the parameters with which we will be taking actions,” he stated.
Following these statements, the Public Ministry (MP) issued a statement in which it noted that the prosecutor is “the first interested in complying and ensuring compliance” with the laws.
New controversy
The text from the Prosecutor’s Office refers to the invitation that the president made to Porras at the end of January to attend a meeting of the Council of Ministers. However, she refused to participate and unleashed a new political and institutional controversy in the Central American country.
According to Tuesday’s statement, that meeting was made up “of people other than those established by law.” “Given this situation, the attorney general made the decision to record the legal irregularity,” they add in the communication.
Finally, the MP said that the prosecutor “sent an invitation to the president, in his capacity as representative of national unity, to hold a working meeting to coordinate inter-institutional efforts in favor of crime victims.”
Canada sanctions
Last week, Canada issued individual sanctions against Porras and three other senior officials, based on their alleged responsibility in the commission of “significant acts of corruption” and for “flagrant and systematic violations of human rights in Guatemala.”
Arévalo’s inauguration in January remained in question until the last moment due to various judicial investigations that the MP opened against him and his political party Semilla.
These actions were denounced by Arévalo, who alleged that the files created by the MP in the hands of the attorney general were due to political persecution, which sought to generate a coup d’état and prevent his takeover from being formalized.
