Former President Danilo Medina was at the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) headquarters for the meeting that would decide the modality for choosing the presidential candidate of the party. The party had already chosen incumbent Mayor of Santiago Abel Martínez as its pre-candidate. He took advantage of the gathering to protest recent legal actions of the Attorney General Office against former high ranking officers in his government. Medina is also president of the PLD, the former ruling party (2004-2020).
Former President Danilo Medina (2012-2020) confronted the actions of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Abinader administration. He said these are an outrage and abuse.
At the gathering of the leadership of the political party, Medina spoke for the first time to the general public about how the justice system has been handling the corruption cases in which several former officials and family members are the main accused.
In his remarks to members of the Central Committee of the PLD, Medina called the cases being carried by the Public Prosecutor’s Office since the end of his administration “political persecution.” He said the Public Prosecutor’s Office is politicizing the actions despite proclaiming itself a non-political and independent body.
“We are seeing, point by point, how in the Dominican Republic the script of the politicization of justice is being applied… we have seen how some members of the Public Ministry have disregarded their duty of impartial investigation, and have already given themselves, without dissimulation, to political persecution,” he said.
“We are living a moment that should worry, not only the Peledeístas, but all democrats in the Dominican Republic. I call to action all of us who value the independence of justice, institutional stability and peaceful coexistence”, affirmed the political leader.
Likewise, he assured that this is a strategy implemented with the objective of intimidating his party, however, his words emphasized “that goal will not be achieved.”
“Let’s be clear, what is happening today is an outrage and is an abuse, and if it ever was, today it is not motivated by the desire to do justice, these actions only seek to intimidate the PLD,” he said.
He said that behind all this is the intention of President Abinader to seek reelection. “Behind all this is a President who does not have the favor of the people, a President who wants to win in court what he cannot win at the ballot box!,” said the former President.
He said that society must hold this government accountable for the material deterioration to which it is subjecting the Dominican people; for the growing poverty, for the fear in the streets, for the dismantling of the health system, for the chaos in education, for the lack of jobs and the high food prices.
The remarks were made during the assembly of the Central Committee of that entity, called to determine the method for the party to chose its candidates for senators, deputies, mayors and municipal directors, as well as city councilors.
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Listin Diario
27 March 2023