President Guillermo Lasso has announced the application of Decree 741. For the first time in the country this constitutional power is used to dissolve the Assembly and call elections.

Lasso's decision has put Ecuadorian citizens on alert, says Rosalía Arteaga Serra. The political parties have an enormous responsibility to propose better cadres, she says. The climate of political instability worries economic and social actors, says Serra, adding that it contributes to the deterioration of the living conditions.