The Senate voted to choose the new five members of the Chamber of Accounts for 2021-2025 on Tuesday, 13 April 2021. The government body is in charge of auditing government agencies.
Senators representing the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) voted in favor, but the votes from the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD), the former ruling party, decided the new members of the Chamber of Accounts.
The senators representing the People’s Force (FP), the political party of former President Leonel Fernández, abstained. Dionis Sánchez, of the FP complained that the selection was the result of a political agreement between the PRM and the PLD.
The senatorial committee in charge of the selection broke with tradition of choosing the top Chamber of Deputies pick of the five shortlists of three and instead selected from the full 15 candidates sent by the Chamber of Deputies. Committee chair, senator Antonio Taveras Guzmán (PRM-Santo Domingo) tweeted on the committee’s final recommendation to the floor: “We have taken on this responsibility so that the country can have a renewed external control body, which is not the result of partisan political distribution as has occurred in the past. Therefore, the best candidates were chosen based on an evaluation of their technical-professional profiles, their performance, both in the public and private sector, and their adherence to ethics and transparency.”
The members are all accountants except lawyer Mario Arturo Fernandez. They are: Janel Andrés Ramírez Sánchez, president; Elsa María Castano Ramírez, vice president; Tomasina Tolentino de Mckenzie, secretary; and members Mario Arturo Fernández Burgos and Elsa María Peña Peña.
The present president of the Chamber of Accounts is paid RD$423,500 plus benefits. Other members receive RD$379,997 a month, plus benefits.
The new members are to be sworn in at the Senate on Thursday, 15 April 2021.
Altagracia Salazar says the new members required a political decision. The negotiation delivered the needed three votes of the PLD. She explained the People’s Force (FP) demands were too high and that lead the Senate, presided by Eduardo Estrella, to vote for those that were acceptable to the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD).
The profiles of the new members are:
Janel Andrés Ramírez Sánchez, president
Certified Public Accountant, with a Master’s Degree in Integral Auditing and Management Control from the University of Valencia in Spain. He is a graduate of the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo (Intec) in accounting on a Central Bank scholarship and also graduated in financial accounting from Universidad APEC. Since July 2017, he is the head of the Accounting Standards and Procedures Directorate of the General Directorate of Governmental Accounting (Digecog). He has worked at the Comptroller General Office. He began his career working for a private accounting firm.
His interview for the job
Elsa María Catano Ramírez, vice president
Certified Public Accountant with more than 30 years of professional practice, with a master’s degree in Accounting and Integral Auditing. She has worked at the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic. She is an accounting graduate of the Universidad UNPHU. At the time of the appointment, she was the Internal Audit Manager of the Hospital General Plaza de la Salud. Her interview for the job
Tomasina Tolentino de Mckenzie, secretary
Public Accountant from the Universidad Tecnológica de Santiago, with a master’s degree in Financial Administration from Universidad APEC. She graduated in degree in Senior Public Management from the Instituto Global de Altos Estudios de Ciencias Sociales/Instituto Universitario de Investigación Ortega y Gasset of Spain. She teaches at the Universidad Tecnológica de Santiago and the Universidad Católica de Santo Domingo, and is an international consultant and lecturer. She was the first financial director at the Constitutional Court. She was worked in several government institutions. Her interview for the job
Elsa Peña Peña, member
Public accountant with 40 years of practice in different public instances. She teaches at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD) and the Catholic University of Santo Domingo (UCSD). She teaches general accounting, taxation and auditing. Her interview for the job
Mario Arturo Fernández Burgos, member
Lawyer and notary public with more than 37 years of practice in legal practice and litigation. Graduate in law from the Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra. He is founder and currently president of the civic movement Santiago Somos Todos, Inc., a non-partisan organization. His interview for the job
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Altagracia Salazar sin Maquillaje
14 April 2021