Independent legislator welcomes audit, PRD blames President Varela

A day after The   National Assembly ejected  officials from the office of the Comptroller General, attempting to audit staffing contracts of the lawmakers,  the  Assembly’s only  Independent Deputy, Ana Matilde Gómez  went  on Wednesday June 6 to  Comptroller Federico Humbert’s office  to deliver  a letter asking  for an audit of her “form 080”  covering the staff  who work in her  office.

In the letter, Gomez said that she is stripping “any functional prerogative granted to me by the Constitution and the law so that the Comptroller’s Office can do its work with professionalism and freedom.”

She  said that “ accountability and transparency should be pillars of public action “,

Gómez said that she made available to the Comptroller’s Office the information related to the specific works and hours of each of the people who work with her.

Meanwhile,   PRD General Secretary  Pedro Miguel Gonzalez condemned the decision of the Comptroller to suspend the payment of Form 080 as disproportionate, irresponsible and subject to the pressures of [Juan Carlos] Varela. “

“The comptroller has violated due process and has violated the law. Who gives you the authority to suspend the payment of a complete spreadsheet where there are many officials

collaborating? “Gonzalez asked. “It is time that they denounce him criminally for exceeding his functions … This is economic harassment. The comptroller is not more than a lackey who is following the desires of Varela to pressure the opposition deputies and get a majority on July 1, which is not going to happen, “he said.

On July 1, a board of directors is elected at the  AssemblyThe Constitution, in its article 280, indicates that the Comptroller has the function of “supervising and regulating, through prior or subsequent control, all acts of management of funds and other public goods, so that they are carried out correctly, according to what is established in the law,  ” reports La Prensa.

on Tuesday Humbert suspended the payments of the 080 form -which contains the contracts of the personal staff of the deputies-, shortly after the Assembly president Yanibel Ábrego expelled the  Comptroller’s auditors.

The Office of the Comptroller General had already suspended payment to more than 3,200 legislative officials, who had been unable to provide documents showing the provision of a service in exchange for a salary.