Ecuador: Congress begins impeachment trial of President Guillermo Lasso

The president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, will defend himself on Tuesday from the accusation of alleged embezzlement, during the beginning of a political trial of censorship in the National Assembly (Parliament), where the opposition was strengthened last Sunday with the appointment of the main authorities of the Chamber.

The session will begin at 10 local time (12 in Argentina), in Parliament, two days after its authorities were renewed, leaving most senior positions in the hands of the opposition.

With 96 votes, the independent Virgilio Saquicela was re-elected as head of Parliament with the hard vote of the opposition movement Union for Hope, former President Rafael Correa (2007-2017) and the also opposition Social Christian Party (PSC), among others.

If the same vote captured by Saquicela is transferred to the impeachment, the fate of Lasso would be cast because his dismissal requires 92 votes. out of 137.

Opponents of Guillermo Lasso vote to start impeaching the president. Photo Reuters

The scenarios

For political analyst César Ulloa, support for Saquicela does not necessarily imply a vote for the trial, "because if that were to happen, the president would activate the 'cross death,'" he said in reference to the possibility of the head of state dissolving Parliament and governing by decree while new general elections are held.

Saquicela believes that there are no grounds for applying this figure, because "they cannot be protected, in the presence of a political trial, in that figure in general terms."

For her part, legislator Yeseña Guamaní, appointed on Sunday as the third member of the Legislative Administration Council, said that yesterday's "overwhelming vote" in the Assembly "can be a reference but not a definition for the trial" of Lasso.

According to the opposition, Lasso committed an alleged embezzlement by having knowledge of alleged irregularities in a contract signed by the state company Flota Petrolera del Ecuador (Flopec) and the private firm Amazonas Tanker and not having acted to avoid further damage to the State.

On the other hand, the president's defense maintains that the contracts were signed under the previous administration of former President Lenin Moreno (2017-2021) and that under the mandate of Lasso a review was requested from the Comptroller (Court of Auditors) to renew them under the conditions and observations made by that body.

The opposition to Lasso, in a flag. Photo Reuters

Last Tuesday, with 88 votes in favor, 23 against and 5 abstentions, the Legislature approved entering the last phase of the trial, in which there will be the interpellation to Lasso. This Tuesday the two legislators designated as interpelantes will intervene, before giving way to the participation of Lasso.

The risks

"There will be the right to reply and later the debate will be opened, which will determine the fate of the head of state regarding the sanction or not," Saquicela said, noting that the vote will proceed 72 hours after the end of the aforementioned debate.

In an interview with EFE, Ulloa said that there are three possible scenarios in the current situation, one of which has to do with the permanence of the assembly members and Lasso in their positions.

If this happens, Lasso must change the social team "integrally" and reinforce the security policy to advance the remaining two years of government, he said. Another scenario outlines him with the possibility that Lasso does not manage to reverse the current opposition majority in the Assembly until the last day of negotiations and calls for "cross death."

Finally, he speculates that if Lasso is dismissed, Alfredo Borrero, (current vice president), could replace him, as determined by law, "which does not mean that Borrero does not dismiss the Assembly, because he can also apply 'cross death.'"

If Borrero takes office, he must send a shortlist to the Assembly with three names to designate the new vice president. The scenario with "less political cost is that the president is not removed because the country can, in some way, maintain some stability," the analyst said.

But, if he is dismissed, "the country risk rises, the multilateral credit closed, total uncertainty," said Ulloa, who believes that currently the political situation in Ecuador is "unviable" because "nobody is clear about the orientation of where we are headed."

Source: EFE and AFP

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See also

Drug Trafficking and Insecurity in Ecuador: Guillermo Lasso Authorizes Army to Act

Ecuador: Guillermo Lasso, between the pulse for the votes in his impeachment and the violence of organized crime