Ecuador’s Constitutional Court dismissed six lawsuits against President Guillermo Lasso’s decision to dissolve the National Assembly and call early elections, while a parliamentary process to oust him was underway.
In a statement, the court revealed that the three judges who analyzed the six actions of unconstitutionality decided on Thursday “unanimously” to reject them, as well as the requests for temporary suspension of the presidential decree.
In the six orders, the judges defended that no court in Ecuador “has the authority to rule on the verification and justification of the cause of the serious political crisis and internal turmoil invoked by the President of the Republic to dissolve”.
“In this way, the Constitutional Court should make timely rulings in response to the moment the country is going through,” the statement said.
Ecuador goes to the polls for the third time in four years
National Electoral Council President Diana Atamaint on Thursday announced early general elections for August 20, Ecuador’s third election in four years.
If necessary, the second round would be on October 15, so the new president could take office around November, Atamaint said, before announcing the timetable, which will also shorten the election campaign from 45 to 15 days.
Conservative Guillermo Lasso announced in a message to the nation on Wednesday the measure envisaged in Ecuador’s 2008 constitution in response to the “serious internal and political turmoil” the country is experiencing.
The decision comes after Lasso appeared in parliament on Tuesday to defend his defense in a case of alleged embezzlement, a process initiated by the opposition that could lead to his impeachment.
Lasso defended himself in parliament, insisting there was no evidence or testimony of wrongdoing.
Lawmakers accuse Lasso of failing to act to terminate a contract between state-owned oil transportation company Flota Petrolera Ecuatoriana and private entity Amazonas Tankers.
Opposition deputies claim Lasso knew the contract was riddled with irregularities and would cost the state millions in damages, a situation the president denies.
Approval of his resignation in parliament would have required 92 votes, equivalent to two-thirds of parliamentarians.
This is reported by the Associated Press (AP) news agency. The Ecuadorian president will be able to govern the country for a maximum period of six months through decrees in urgent economic matters, to be approved by the review of the Constitutional Court
Lasso, a former banker, was elected in 2021 and has faced strong opposition in the 137-member National Assembly since the start of his term.
Source: DN
