Teacher’s guild candidate says ruling party meddles in polls

Santo Domingo.- The teacher Maria Teresa Cabrera, a candidate for the Dominican Teachers Association’s (ADP) General Secretary, Wednesday denounced the ruling PLD party intervenes in the electoral process to alter polling results.

The country’s more than 78,000 teachers nationwide will choose between Cabrera, Eduardo Hidalgo, Kenya Xiomara Guante, Angel Ramirez and Franco de los Santos, to head their union.

Cabrera accused District Director Sobeida Sanchez of having "invaded" a polling station, where she affirms all the technicians are at her service.

She said Sanchez inexplicably began to count the voting ballots. "This is a process for the teachers and the teachers who are union members, so we feel that it is wrong for the authorities to intervene in that process.”

Cabrera said in some towns such as Santo Domingo North and San Cristóbal, the polling station officials had been changed.

The union leader asked Education Minister Josefina Pimentel to reign in her staff and allow the guild to freely choose its authorities.