Congress agenda discussion of controversial initiatives, including the one that seeks to create a “superministry” of Environment
Despite the opposition of some deputies, the Block Chiefs Instance of the Congress of the Republic scheduled for this Wednesday, October 5, the beginning of the approval of the initiative that seeks to create the “Law that Places the Institutions of Environmental Competence under the Coordination of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources”, which has been criticized for trying to liquidate several institutions.
The proposal, which was presented on March 22 by the president of Congress, Shirley Rivera, It will be known this Wednesday in its first debate.
During the meeting of the Block Chiefs Instance, eight deputies voted in favor of eliminating the proposal from the agenda, since they consider that it is a setback in the decentralization of state entities in environmental matters.
If the regulations are approved, institutions such as the National Council of Protected Areas (Conap), the National Institute of Forests (Inab), the Office of Control of State Reserve Areas (Ocret) are liquidated and the four authorities of the lakes of Atitlán, Amatitlán, Izabal-Río Dulce and Petén Itzá, in addition to giving the Ministry of the Environment control over some Q900 million of the state budget.
“Recentralizing the only thing that will achieve is to generate not only a larger bureaucracy, but it is to grow and create a superministry of Environment that would lend itself to more inefficiency and corruption,” argued the deputy Álvaro Arzú, who proposed to discard the proposal from the agenda for this Wednesday.
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The parliamentarian also assured that, in his opinion, There is a general “rejection” from various sectors and it is not prudent to know it at this time.
Deputy Fidel Reyes Lee defended the proposal and assured that today there are institutions that have more preponderance than the Ministry of the Environment, which disqualifies the Executive Body.
“It is shameful that the Ministry of the Environment asks for permission because it cannot act with its environmental policies”, justified the parliamentarian.
Also read: Officials speak of the “superministry of Environment” and affirm that what they seek is to unify efforts and avoid duplication of functions
Deputy Sonia Gutiérrez also opposed including the bill on the agenda, since, in her opinion, creating a “superministry” it means giving all the power to the portfolio that it considers has only demonstrated “inability” in the execution of resources, and furthermore, it can represent a danger and a setback in terms of decentralization.
State Procurement Law
This Wednesday will also continue the approval in the second debate of the initiative that seeks to create a new State Procurement Law and suppress the current Law, which as main changes contemplates an extension of the ceilings so that the government entities make direct purchases that lend themselves to discretion.
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One of the main changes is that purchases can be made without bidding for amounts of up to Q2 million, when currently it must be for amounts less than Q900 thousand.
Deputy Lucrecia Hernández Mack proposed to discard the second reading of the proposal from the agenda; nevertheless, only three blocks voted in favor of the approach.
“It is an initiative of 140 articles that were ruled in two hours. No real study and technical analysis was done, there was no real discussion and we are talking about one of the key laws for public administration”, Hernández Mack justified.
Economic compensation
The Block Chiefs Instance also decided to include the second reading of the initiative that seeks to approve the “Temporary Comprehensive Development Law” that contemplates a payment of Q36 thousand for a period of three years to Army veterans, through an environmental program, and that has generated discord between the groups of ex-military.
Also read: Creating a superministry of Environment will only create more disorder and spurious management
“This law is going to get us in trouble for trying to deceive people. The military that are outside of Congress want another law, and not this one, which they want to introduce us to in an electoral way. Don’t fool the people don’t fool the military, it’s going to be worse”, Deputy Manuel Rivera said during the summons.
