The Attorney General’s Office (PGN) and the General Secretariat of the Presidency presented a criminal complaint and request for withdrawal of the right of pre-trial against Consuelo Porras, attorney general and head of the Public Ministry (MP).
This February 29, the head of the PGN, Julio Roberto Saavedra, accompanied by Juan Gerardo Guerrero, general secretary of the Presidency, went to Criminal Management of the Court Tower to present the criminal complaint against the prosecutor Consuelo Porras, and request that remove his immunity.
Saavedra told journalists that the complaint arose from the refusal of the attorney general to attend to the call made to her by the President of the Republic -Bernardo Arévalo- to participate in the cabinet meeting on January 29.
“The intention expressed in that invitation was to coordinate State policies and actions on issues that are fundamental in the effort that the State of Guatemala is currently pursuing to reduce impunity, combat corruption and guarantee respect for human rights,” commented Saavedra. .
He added that the presence of the prosecutor at that meeting was considered necessary for her to participate in the deliberation of those State issues that would improve the actions of the joint government with the Public Ministry.
“The fourth article of the Organic Law of the Public Ministry establishes, and here I quote, “The president of the Republic may invite the attorney general to participate in any meeting of the cabinet or ministers of State. In this case, the prosecutor will be obliged to attend the meeting with voice, but without vote,” Saavedra read.
The head of the PGN commented: “refusing to participate in that cabinet meeting could be framed in criminal conduct that article 419 of the Penal Code defines as failure to fulfill duties, since it is the obligation of the attorney general to attend to the calls of the president of the Republic to coordinate State policies on the issues for which it was invited.”
He added that the fact that the fourth article of the Organic Law of the MP grants her the obligation to attend meetings with voice, but without vote, implies that the attorney general must participate in the deliberations of the council of ministers, express her opinion, make proposals and debate the State policies that concern them.
He reiterated in those meetings that the prosecutor does not have a vote, but that it is an obligation that she failed to fulfill by leaving the meeting on January 29.
“For these reasons and with instructions from the President of the Republic, as attorney general of the nation I have filed a criminal complaint and request for -withdrawal of the right to- before trial for the procedures that correspond according to the law,” said Saavedra.
He stated that in due course, the courts must evaluate this request and order the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate the implications of the attorney general’s refusal to actively participate in the cabinet meetings convened by the President of the Republic.
He pointed out that he was accompanied to present the complaint by Juan Gerardo Guerrero, private secretary of the Presidency, to reinforce with his presence the legal value that this action has “as a mechanism for the submission of all public officials to a true rule of law and not to a crafty state of legality.”
Guerrero told journalists that the present action that is being delivered this February 29 arises from a series of analyzes that have been carried out in detail by the Executive and is to redirect the rule of law that the government so desperately needs. Public ministry.
“I want to emphasize that this is going to be one of several actions that will be undertaken by the Executive against all those corrupt actors, those actors who are against the rule of law, those actors who are acting outside the framework of legality. and the rule of law,” he commented.
MP issues the position
The Public Ministry (MP) in an official statement, indicated that Porras based his decision on the call to a meeting of the Council of Ministers, which is why it is considered that the request for the withdrawal of pretrial proceedings lacks legal basis and is “spurious.” “.
“The decision of the Attorney General is duly based on what the law establishes, so it is considered that the request for the withdrawal of pretrial proceedings lacks legal support, is spurious and has a possible political origin with the aim of obstructing justice. and hinder criminal action. Therefore, the Public Ministry will act in accordance with its legal and constitutional mandate,” indicates the MP in his position.
Furthermore, it emphasizes that the Public Ministry will act “in accordance with its legal and constitutional mandate.”
In her own words, “The Attorney General as Head of the Public Ministry is in charge of ensuring strict compliance with the laws of the country, in that sense, she is and has always been the first interested in complying with the law and that it is comply, without exception.”
Regarding her presence at the Presidential House, the Attorney General claims to have attended in compliance with article 4 of the Organic Law of the Public Ministry, with the intention of engaging in a constructive dialogue.
“The Attorney General was already clear when she publicly stated on several occasions that, in compliance with article 4 of the Organic Law of the Public Ministry, she attended the Presidential House in response to the invitation made, with the desire to engage in a constructive dialogue in favor of the people of Guatemala. “, it adds.
According to the statement, “however, the President began a meeting of the Council of Ministers, and the Political Constitution of the Republic itself and the Law of the Executive Branch clearly establish that the Council of Ministers cannot be made up of people other than those established by law.”
Finally, it is stated that the Attorney General points out the legal irregularity of the situation, highlighting that “article 4 of the Organic Law of the Public Ministry, as well as article 18 of the Law of the Executive Agency, only regulate the obligation of the Attorney General to go to a specific cabinet, made up of ministers and for the purposes established in a Government Agreement that gives it life”, and that at said meeting no government agreement had been issued in this regard.
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