More groups demand that Dominican Republic President fire officials

Santo Domingo.- The Justice and Transparency Foundation (FJT) on Wednesday asked president Danilo Medina to "immediately terminate" the officials who’ve failed to meet the deadline to file their financial statements.

FJT president Trajano Vidal Potentini said there’s an apparent apathy and a lack of institutionalism in the country in accountability and transparency in the management of public affairs.

“The new law replaces the outdated provision on financial statements, which lacked consequence, different from current law which has claws and provides for the removal of offenders and sentences officials for up to 10 years in prison, which is undoubtedly a significant advance in the fight to prevent government corruption," said Vidal Potentini, quoted by elcaribe.com.do

He noted that the current law is in effect for more than 2,000 government officials and the more than 8,000 financial statements recently delivered by the National Treasurer to the Accounts Chamber, documents which in his view should also should be reviewed.

The head of the FTJ also demanded that Accounts Chamber president Licelot Marte publish and submit the list of names of offending officials to the Justice Ministry, “without delay.”

Mounting calls

Recently civil society organizations Citizen Participation and the Dominican Alliance Anticorruption (ADOCCO) have also called on Medina to fire those officials who failed to meet the Accounts Chamber’s deadline to submit their financial statements, which expired Tuesday.