The friendships of a “Guardian of Justice”

Eduardo Ulloa was a friend of his friends, among them, people linked to those prosecuted by his prosecutors in the Pu blic Ministry for high-profile cases. 

Being an ordinary lawyer, before becoming Attorney General, he questioned his predecessor for the same reasons for which he has been the target of disapproval. He blindly executed every suggestion made to him by his today — and those of before — confessed friends. The irony is that he ended up being the victim of his own criticism.

What is the legacy of his brief tour of the Public Ministry? When President Laurentino Cortizo announced that he would be the next Procurator – in December 2019, and with the presence of his entire Cabinet – he said that he hoped that the new Procurator would be the “guardian of justice”, and that he had everything to “leave a legacy to the country, to his children, to his family ”.

But Ulloa resigned because ” family time was reduced and our emotional peace and tranquility was affected.” Fortunately, it did not occur to him to be a journalist, because that is our day to day. Even so, he accepted – with a splendid smile – a controversial position, subjected to the ups and downs of politics, pressure of all kinds and the animosity of many. He ignored that it required high doses of courage, as well as moral and emotional strength.

Ulloa was and is unable to call things by name: corruption, crime, punishment. I’ve never heard him accuse anyone, not even by their nicknames. He always resorted to absurd neutrality when his job was the opposite: to prosecute crime, point out those investigated, support his people. He preferred his beloved peace of mind and emotional tranquility, while the country expected determination and courage from him. The country won nothing with Ulloa at the head of the Public Ministry, although, without a doubt, his friends have lost a great henchman.

It took him 13 months to realize that he lacked the basics to fill the position. And if it weren’t for the fact that he practically fled through the kitchen door, perhaps this would have been his greatest act of bravery: admitting that he couldn’t handle the charge out of sheer cowardice. But I also believe that, deep down, their reasons are just excuses for leaving office. There must be far more gruesome reasons for leaving, but we will never hear them from his mouth.

What we must bear in mind now is that if a Yesman like Ulloa preferred to leave – whatever the reason or whatever – whoever replaces him will have to agree, as a sine qua non requirement to occupy the position, to which Ulloa feared to give him the Yes. In other words, we don’t expect anything better than our friend the one who ran away. Can there be someone worse? Judging by the former attorney’s friends, the judges and rulings department is managed from the Palace, where a smiling young man surely already has orders to prepare a list of candidates for the President. Let’s not be surprised if Darth Vader or Ja-Nio, the experienced hunter hunted, appears in this one.

Spicy Saturday,  Rolando  Rodriguez La Prensa, Feb. 27