The Foundation for Institutionalism and Justice (Finjus) says that the country is facing an imminent collapse of the judiciary, as several questionable decisions by judges have made it evident that something is very rotten in the system.
However, in an interview with El Dia, the president of the Supreme Court of Justice, Mariano German called on Dominicans not to lose faith in the system and said he would not resign from his post as head of the judiciary.
He played down the importance of the judges being questioned, saying that anyone who has been at fault would be penalized.
The Attorney General is investigating six judges, including resigning judge Francisco Arias Valera, a former member of the Council of the Judicial Branch (CPJ) in charge of disciplining judges.
German, who is also the president of the CPJ, says that the cases do not mean that a cartel has permeated the judiciary as several critics are claiming.
In the media it has been pointed out that the judges were appointed during the Leonel Fernandez administration to guarantee political immunity, but they have also served the interests of drug traffickers and criminals. The most controversial case of questionable justice involves the former OISOE director, now senator Felix Bautista, who has managed to obtain six rulings that have prevented the case against him from being heard. The last step in justice was not reached, when it was Attorney General Francisco Dominguez Brito, a high-ranking member of the Political Committee of the ruling PLD, who decided that the case should not be studied by the plenary of the Supreme Court of Justice, arguing he did not believe in justice.
Meanwhile, the council of past presidents of the Herrera Industries Association (AEIH) warned that the scandals affecting the judiciary are a reflection of the institutional crisis that will imply high risks for investment, jobs, and long-term social stability and governance. AEIH president Antonio Taveras called for civil society and business entities to unite to expel “perverse politics” from the Judicial Branch.
AEIH advierte crisis sistema de justicia afecta inversión RD