President Hipolito Mejia confirmed on Friday, 14 September that controversial lawyer Pedro Romero Confesor was elected a Supreme Court judge because former President Joaquin Balaguer had made the request. “That is responsibility of the PRSC,” he said when asked about the appointment. “President Joaquin Balaguer asked for it [for Romero Confesor] and it was granted.” Romero Confesor was regarded by the late PRD leader Jose Francisco Peña Gomez as one of his greatest foes. Regardless, Mejia defended Romero’s ties with the PRSC saying that in this country “anyone is a politician.” He told the Coalition for an Independent Justice that had lobbied to avoid political appointments among the three Supreme Court vacancies that were filled last week, “Wait until you are government to do things the way you want.” The Coalition’s response: “We do not seek to govern, but to watch over those who govern and contribute to good government.” The Coalition had rated the election as “superficial and disappointing,” as reported in El Caribe newspaper.
