The governor warns that he will evaluate the lobbyist's report for statehood and, if he finds that he did not fulfill his duty, he will refer her to Justice.
At the time when he rejected the suggestion of the lobbyist for statehood, Elizabeth Torres to eliminate the congressional delegation, Governor Pedro Pierluisi warned this Thursday that he will take to court any delegate who has breached their responsibility as established by Law 167-2020 that made his election viable last March.
The delegates, according to that statute, must report to the governor every 90 days. Torres, like other delegates, have already presented their respective reports. Pierluisi announced that he has a work team carefully reviewed each report to ensure that the assigned task and the proper use of public funds have been fulfilled. Delegates charge $ 90,000 annually and are entitled to $ 30,000 in expense reimbursement.
“To the extent that public funds are being used, public funds have to be used according to the law and the law is clear. He says that the obligation of each delegate is to advance, obviously including the use of public funds, is to advance statehood. That is the public purpose for the use of those public funds. So you have to review that report in detail because I want, above all, to comply with the law, "said the governor.
“We will go to all the necessary forums. If we determine that there has been a violation, referrals will be made to all concerned authorities. There are no exceptions here. Here the law applies to everyone equally, ”he added when asked what he would do if he finds that Rodríguez is not complying with Law 167-2020.
Torres, in his report, recommended that the congressional delegation, made up of her, María “Mayita” Meléndez, Ricardo Rosselló Nevares, Zoraida Buxó, Roberto Lefranc and Melinda Romero, be eliminated. Torres described the congressional delegation as an "enchantment."
“That option totally ruled out, the Law (167-2020) called for that option of congressional delegates. We have six delegates at the moment. All are required by law to advance the cause of statehood. Definitely, that there is no basis whatsoever to eliminate this congressional delegation and I would say that the supposed justifications for that, the ones that I could see in the media, is that no. There is no basis at all, ”Pierluisi said.
To questions from El Nuevo Día, he dismissed some of the arguments outlined by Torres to suggest the elimination of the delegation. He said "who said this is easy" regarding the process to achieve statehood for the island. He also argued that it was not a "matter of complaining" about the need for a status consultation endorsed by the United States Congress.
“We all know that. This is not a matter of complaining. Everyone has to do what the law requires them to do. Anyone who aspired to a congressional office, to a congressional delegate position under that law has to comply with that law and is not a matter of complaining. What is going to be done here is to review that 200-page report to see what specific steps have been taken, if any, because if no action was taken, the law was violated, "said the governor.
Similarly, Torres in his 204-page report alleged that Rosselló Nevares uses the position of delegate to advance his re-entry into active politics for 2024.
“That is certainly a personal opinion. The former governor, they tell me, also submitted a report and the same applies. In the case of the former governor, he is not using public funds, but he is under the obligation to submit that report. Which he did. From what I have seen in the media, there is no doubt that he has made efforts in favor of statehood, "said Pierluisi.
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