President Luis Abinader made a surprising announcement on Friday, 16 August 2024 when it was known he was appointing La Vega Mayor Kelvin Cruz as the new head of the Ministry of Sports and Recreation (Miderec). Cruz had just been sworn in in April 2024 for a third term as La Vega mayor.
Moises Mejia, sports writer for the Listin Diario, equated the move to a surprise play in baseball: a tag at third base when the runner is expecting a throw to first. “That’s exactly what President Abinader did when he appointed Cruz, a figure more associated with politics than sports,” wrote Mejia.
It was not that people did not expect Camacho to be removed. There were many candidates for the position, including Camacho who sought to remain at least until the Central American and Caribbean Games take place in Santo Domingo in July 2026. Listin Diario listed several who were candidates for the position: Alberto Rodríguez, Luisín Mejía, Junior Noboa, Benny Metz, Cristóbal Marte, Orlando Jorge Villegas, Moisés Alou, Elvis Duarte, Alberto Atallah, and others.
Mejia of the Listin Diario says the name of La Vega’s mayor never surfaced in the discussions. Cruz is a two-term mayor of La Vega and the current president of the Dominican Federation of Municipalities (FEDOMU). He has made a career as a person deeply involved in local politics. He was even elected president of the Latin American Federation of Cities, Municipalities, and Municipal Associations (FLACMA) this year.
While Cruz has concentrated on politics, he has dabbled somewhat with sports. Listin Diario reports that he has served as Regional Director of Sports from 2002 to 2004 and was general manager of the Enriquillo and La Matica basketball clubs, where he won multiple championships.
Cruz now steps down as mayor of La Vega to assume his new role as Minister of Sports. In his first day on the job, at the Presidential Palace he met with President Luis Abinader and the country’s three Paris Olympic medal winners.
Read more:
Listin Diario
Presidency
20 August 2024