Digital outlet La Posta released audios and documents involving El Gran Padrino — as they call Danilo Carrera, the ruler’s sister’s husband — and other officials with a scheme for accepting bribes from state vendors.
Lasso defended his government and relatives against the allegations, arguing there was an intention to “move the pond full of mud to see what they catch”.
Carrera is a person I respect very much, I have known him for 64 years, he is an honorable, irreproachable man whose honor cannot be tarnished by using his face as a symbol of corruption, the President said of his brother-in-law in In an interview with the virtual magazine Plan V, National Assembly (Parliament) President Virgilio Saquicela and Union for Hope MPs asked prosecutors to launch an investigation into the revelations, and the institution reported that an investigation was already underway.
Incidentally, the Andean MP Virgilio Hernández wondered why no raids had been carried out, emergency measures issued or the arrests of the accused for investigative purposes ordered before the serious charges were filed.
We see corruption at the highest levels and the entire state structure lends itself to doing big business for small economic groups while problems like insecurity and unemployment worsen in the country, Hernández said.
Former presidential candidate Andres Arauz stressed that Danilo Carrera was Lasso’s figurehead and urged lawmakers to activate Article 129.2 of the constitution, which would facilitate a political trial of the president for acts of corruption.
Political analysts believe that amid an election scenario, Lasso is desperate to divert attention and cover up the investigation into The Great Godfather, and that’s why he announced a tax cut on Wednesday as a populist measure, although it could be damaging to the country.
Arauz mentioned that the government intends to deceive with the referendum, but basically they are trying to cover up these kinds of irregularities, and for this reason, before the elections, they decided to reduce the tax on the export of foreign currencies, their beneficiaries doing so would be the members of their circle of tax havens.
Meanwhile, most national media ignore or give little coverage to allegations of alleged corruption, despite including the country’s highest authority.
On February 5, more than 13 million Ecuadorians are called to the polls to participate in the government-sponsored referendum to choose more than 5,600 positions at the local and regional level.
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