Opposition party’s big guns dig in for showdown

Santo Domingo.- Dominican Republic’s major opposition party (PRD) on Thursday notified ex president and candidate Hipolito Mejia and three other party leaders to appear on January 14, to face the disciplinary hearing first scheduled for the end of December, but which the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) had suspended.

PRD disciplinary board director Geovanny Tejada said the notification was drafted according to the TDE ruling handed down December 28, noting that he expects the leaders to attend the hearing to defend the charges of misconduct submitted against them.

In addition to Mejía, acting party chairman Andrés Bautista, organization secretary Geanilda Vasquez, and general secretary Orlando Jorge were also cited.

The hearing, ordered by PRD president Miguel Vargas, seeks the expulsion of Mejia and Bautista, and a two-year suspension for Jorge and Vasquez.

Many sectors see the notification as the prelude to the big showdown between Vargas and Mejia.