2022News

What were the deputies up to when visiting the Ministry of Education?

An unnamed deputy requested an appointment to meet with the new Minister of Education Angel Hernandez. Then the media learned about the meeting when deputy Ydenia Doñé Tiburcio used her turn at a routine session of the Chamber of Deputies to complain that the Minister of Education “had evicted” these from his office on Tuesday, 20 September 2022. Doñé Tiburcio was one of four deputies who visited Minister Hernandez on that day.

As matters happened, instead of the single deputy who had requested the “courtesy meeting” with the Minister of Education, a committee of four deputies attended and arrived with a full camera crew. The deputies said they were on a mission of the committee of education of the Chamber of Deputies.

The Minister of Education told the deputies to turn off the camera. The deputies responded it was part of their protocol and they were the first branch of the Dominican state and that was their way of holding meetings. Education Minister Angel Hernandez reminded the deputies that a courtesy visit had been requested. He was not aware that the education committee of the Chamber of Deputies would be visiting him. He said that the filming by the crew was in violation to his protocol at the Ministry of Education. At this point, the deputy who had requested the meeting said they were leaving. That put an end to the meeting. A video shows that Education Minister Hernandez accompanied the deputies to the door expressing he didn’t understand what the deputies were up to.

The communications department of the Ministry of Education released a video showing the incident after Doñe Tiburcio made the complaint at the working session of the Chamber of Deputies.

Education Minister Angel Hernandez has been critical of his predecessor, Roberto Furcal, a high-ranking ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) member.

In commenting on the happening, veteran journalist Altagracia Salazar asks everyone was left wondering what was the topic of the meeting? She observed the legislators have a very low credibility and that these never showed an interest in meeting with the former Minister of Education Roberto Furcal despite the later being constantly in the headlines for irregularities in office.

Read more in Spanish:
Diario Libre
El Patio
Hoy

28 September 2022