Despite the PRD senators forming a majority in the Senate with 24 of 30 senators, the absence of several at a session yesterday allowed PLD senators to prevent passage of a US$143 million loan. The loan from Spanish banks was sought by the Ministry of Agriculture to finance the construction of Merca Santo Domingo, a mega cold storage, market and distribution center, as well as the opening of 300 plant nurseries throughout the country. When the senators were to vote on the project, only 17 were in the hall, thus the walk out of PLD Senators Enrique Martinez and Geraldo Apolinar left the Senate without the necessary quorum. Martinez had requested the postponing of the loan bill so that its feasibility could be studied. President of the Senate, Ramon Alburquerque who favored the bill, rejected that idea. The short term financing has met with the opposition of several sectors that point to the lack of transparency, the high interest rates, short terms, and to the fact that the projects to be undertaken have not been subject to tenders. Critics say the Congress has been favoring these short term loans when the government already has US$500 million in soft loans approved by multilateral organizations and has not been able to distribute them due to lack of matching funds.
