Appointments are not ethical, say jurists
In Lenín Moreno’s government, it would seem that being a relative of a senior official is worthy enough to get a diplomatic position abroad.
The daughter of the president, Irina Moreno González, is the counselor in the Permanent Mission of Ecuador to the United Nations, in New York, since April 2016, with a monthly remuneration of USD 7,688.52, including the adjustment item for the cost of life abroad.
Irina Moreno has a degree in Organizational Communication and Public Relations and has two masters degrees in Fine and Decorative Arts, and in International Relations.
Janneth Molina Coronel, mother of the former Anti-Corruption Secretary of the Presidency and current Minister of Economic and Social Inclusion, Iván Granda, has served since November 2019 as advisor to the Foreign Service of the Ecuadorian embassy in Mexico.
Molina receives monthly income for USD 4,902.08 and holds a degree in Educational Sciences in Language and Literature, and has a Master’s degree in Cultural Studies.
Another case is that of Cristóbal Fernando Vicente Roldán Cobo, father of the General Secretary of the Presidency, Juan Sebastián Roldán, who holds the position of ambassador of Ecuador in Spain, with a unified monthly salary of USD 11,587.15.
Roldán has been working in that role since May 2018 and as an academic preparation has a degree in Legal Sciences.
The former president of the National Assembly and current Assemblyman of Alianza País, José Serrano Salgado, has two of his brothers in the foreign service. Jorge Luis Serrano has served as minister at the embassy of Ecuador in France, since February 2016, with unified monthly income of USD 8,860.36. He is a sociologist and has a Master’s degree in Communication, mention Public Opinion.
His brother, Francisco Javier Serrano Salgado, serves as an advisor at the embassy of Ecuador in Hungary, since September 2017, and receives monthly income unified for USD 4,992.55. He has an agricultural engineer degree from the Universidad del Azuay.
The list also includes Darío Patricio Carrión Paredes, father of the Alianza País assemblyman, María José Carrión, who is Ecuador’s ambassador to Cuba. Carrión receives a total monthly income of USD 7,323.59 and he does not have a university degree registered with the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, SENESCYT.
The paradox of the appointment of relatives of government authorities in positions abroad, without any experience, is that President Moreno himself reopened the Diplomatic Academy a few months ago. In the Executive Decree for that purpose he mentioned that “The Ecuadorian foreign service requires trained and specialized professionals in the disciplines associated with international relations …”.
To these appointments are added those of former officials of this regime and journalists, also without experience in the foreign service.
In the opinion of the expert in Law, Guillermo Trávez, there is no legal restriction so that relatives of the President of the Republic or of high authorities are appointed in positions abroad, as they are free removal positions. However, he considers that, by ethics, such appointments should not be given, and that the preparation of the applicant should be prioritized to hold a position in a diplomatic delegation.
The lawyer Ramiro Aguilar, agrees with that criterion and points out that it is a bad habit, not only of this government. “You can not put the mother of counselor in Mexico or the father of ambassador in Spain,” says Aguilar, after highlighting that it is appropriate for officials to have knowledge of the foreign service.
There are currently 622 officials in embassies, consulates and diplomatic representations of Ecuador in the world. USD 2.9 million per month is allocated for the payment of remuneration.
Source: Los periodistas
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