Guatemala City, Jan 14 (EFE). – The Guatemalan opposition deputy, José Inés Castillo, assured on Sunday that the current Congress of the Central American country is hindering the inauguration of President-elect Bernardo Arévalo.
“They are delaying the installation of the Congress in its tenth legislature because they do not want to give Arévalo possession,” Castillo, a legislator in opposition to the government currently led by Alejandro Giammattei, told journalists.
“A coup is being brewed,”he added.
The inauguration of the 2024-2028 term of Guatemala’s 160-member Congress must take place on Sunday to allow for the swearing-in of president-elect Bernardo Arévalo.
Tension in Congress
Tensions have risen in Guatemala’s Congress in recent hours because of a dispute over credentials preventing the inauguration of new lawmakers for 2024-2028.
Opposition deputies Aldo Dávila, of the Winaq party, and Karina Paz, of the Vos party, said the inauguration process was not moving forward and that new demands were being made outside the law.
“This doesn’t smell good,” said Paz, who, along with Dávila, strongly questioned a commission created in parliament on Sunday to verify the credentials of the new lawmakers, which Dávila denounced as “hand-picked.”
Castillo also criticized the commission, saying it was an “inquisition.”
Supreme Court: Arévalo’s party suspended
Guatemala’s Constitutional Court ruled on Sunday to suspend the Seed Movement, the party of president-elect Bernardo Arévalo, several sources confirmed.
The ruling states that the 23 Seed Movement representatives will be considered independent (without a political party) for the entire legislature (2024-2028).
The decision leaves the Seed Movement out of the Congress Executive Committee for 2024-2025.
In 2023, the same court ordered that all elected officials take office in January 2024.
Arévalo: “They will not be able to stop us”
Amid the tension in the legislature, the president-elect declared on social media that “the Constitution will be respected and there will be a change of government.”
“My commitment to Guatemala is stronger than ever. We will move forward, and they will not be able to stop us,” Arévalo said on X (formerly Twitter).
Since Arévalo came second in the first round of the 2023 presidential election in June, the Public Ministry has launched legal persecution to prevent the president-elect and the Seed Movement’s deputies from taking office.
The Guatemalan Congress suspended his party in August, a decision that led to the leader of the Congress, Shirley Rivera, being sanctioned by the United States.
In September Arévalo de León accused Attorney General Consuelo Porras and Judge Orellana of attempting a coup to prevent him from taking office.
Porras’ judicial actions have led to massive protests and roadblocks by the population since October, demanding her resignation.
Arévalo has also warned that he will demand her resignation on the Monday after his inauguration.
The president-elect will be sworn in on Sunday for a four-year term, replacing the current president, Alejandro Giammattei. EFE
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