‘Greens’ question legitimacy of Dominican Republic’s Presidency

Santo Domingo.- The Green March movement on Sunday demanded that president Danilo Medina an explain his relationship  during the last two electoral campaigns with his strategist Joao Santana, convicted in Brazil for his links to the Petrobás corruption scandal.

The movement says Medina must clear doubts about his Presidency’s legitimacy after revelations in that country about the payments made by Santana and his wife Mónica Moura, in political campaigns in Brazil as well as abroad.

It demands that the president complies with his speech of transparency and publish all the information related to the private financing of his electoral campaigns as soon as possible, specifying payments to Santana, as capacity as advisor, as well as any funds received from Odebrecht or associate companies in the Dominican Republic.

“For the Green March the publication by the Brazilian newspaper Estadao of the transcripts of the interrogation of Fernando Migliaccio da Silva, who affirmed that Odebrecht applied in model of illegal financing of electoral campaigns in Dominican Republic, in exchange for securing public works contracts, deepens the country’s Institutional crisis and the struggle of citizens against the regime of corruption and impunity,” the movement said in a press release.

“In political financing donations don’t exist, rather investment…he who pays charges.”

The group on Sunday staged a “Chichiguazo” (kite-in), the first of several peaceful protests in the coming days during what it calls “Green Holy Week.”

They urged citizens to be alert to the Justice Ministry’ possible effort to “stupor,” to ensure impunity for those who paid or took bribes, ballooned costs of public works and Odebrecht’s illegal campaign financing.