CD and Martinelli about face on suit against electoral judges

Just a few hours after a government spokesman defended a law suit against Judges of the Electoral College President Martinelli backed down for the second time in a week 

He  again called for peace while a local on line web site was predicting riots in the streets.

On Saturday, June 23, he peronally  called the judges of the Electoral Tribunal and apologized for signing instructions for his party’s lawyers to sue them.

Luis Eduardo Camacho, acting as spokesman for Democratic Change (CD), confirmed that the president and chairman of the party, Ricardo Martinelli, will propose to the CD board to authorize him to withdraw the case against the Electoral Court judges.

"As President of the Republic he wants to support the Catholic Church's call to peace, calling for the closure of special [National Assembly] sessions and withdrawing plans to sell off shares in joint ventures.” said Camacho  

The spokesman reiterated the CD’s withdrawal of the suit as obviously the opposition wants to say that his government wants to attack another organ of state.

Camacho explained that the complaint against the judges of the TE is part of a series of resources used by the CD to defend its  victory in Bebedero, Los Santos, believing that electoral justice is not being done, and that after a year since  the election a candidate who won 3 to 1 has not yet taken office.

"I understand there is a challenge but a year has passed since the election. What message is the TE giving to us?, There is no justification for failure to recognize the win," said.Camacho.

He insisted that Ricardo Martinelli was not the person, as President, not even as party president who laid the complaint. It was the  CD, and he signed the document that empowered lawyers to sue.

 But even while Camacho was struggling to explain the volte face. The President was calling each of the three judges “to excuse the action filed against them before the plenary of the Supreme Court of Justice, " said the electoral body. Martinelli described the suit as "a mistake."

In a statement released by the Director of Communications, Humberto Castillo,  the ET said that "in his conversation with the judges Gerardo Solís, Eduardo Valdés Escoffery and Erasmo Pinilla, the president Ricardo Martinelli said it was wrong to have followed the advice of his attorney to file the action which called for the removal from office and dismissal of the judges and the alternates, and promised to rectify and withdraw it  on Monday."

Additionally said the press release, President Martinelli said the judges and the rest of the PT functionaries should not feel any pressure in the discharge of their duties. "The judges Solis, Valdes and Pinilla accepted the apology of President Ricardo Martinelli andreiterated that they will continue to act with attachment to the Constitution, the law, and transparency as is the custom in the Electoral Tribunal."