The fight to define the leadership of the Comptroller General of Accounts (CGC) includes the rector of the University of San Carlos de Guatemala (Usac), Walter Mazariegos, for the participation of two new universities linked to it for the future nomination commission.
For the first time, the deans of the Juan José Arévalo University and the American University will participate, new higher education study houses that are related to the rector of USAC.
The 2022 CGC renewal process occurred with a candidate made up of 23 commissioners. The rector of the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala (UVG) as its president, 11 professionals and 11 deans.
But with the new deanships the number of deans increases to 13, which means that the number of university graduates also increases to the same amount, meaning that by 2026 there will be 27 commissioners in this process.
The Juan José Arévalo University was founded in 2024, according to documents from the Council of Higher Private Education (CEPS)only having faculties of Humanities and Psychology.
However, a communication dated March 27 from that university reported the appointment of three new deans for the faculties of Economic Sciences, Human Sciences, and Legal and Social Sciences.
This study house began with Luis Fernando Cordón as general secretary, who is also general secretary of Usac, in charge of Mazariegos.
To date, it is unknown if Cordón still holds this position or if the position was transferred to another person with a less public profile, since the university does not have a website.
Likewise, the American University was established in November of last year, according to a CEPS resolution. It has two academic units, the Faculty of Administration Sciences and the Faculty of Economic Sciences.
The creation of the American University was signed by Juan Carlos Godínez as secretary of the CEPS, an actor who is strongly related to his background in the USAC, since he was an advisor to Mazariegos and was sanctioned by the United States.
The appointments
Since its founding, the American University already had a Faculty of Economic Sciences, with Edgar Estuardo Santos Sutuj as dean. according to the latest public information from this study house.
Universidad Juan José Arévalo, according to the communication of March 27, has Silvia Cristina Duarte Lucero as dean of the Faculty of Economic Sciences.
Duarte Lucero was elected by the College of Public Accountants and Auditors (CPA) for the Great Professional Alliance (GAP) and Strategic Allies slate in the 2022 CGC candidacy. according to the monitoring of Guatemala Visible.
In Human Sciences, the Juan José Arévalo University has Karla Lisseth Valdez Hernández as dean, of whom there are no records of partition in second degree election processes.
While the designated dean for the Faculty of Legal and Social Sciences is Adelupe Jocabed Rojas Castillo, legal professional who participated in the nomination commission of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE).
Rojas Castillo was elected by the Higher University Council (CSU) as the deputy of the rector Walter Mazariegos, according to the resolution of the university authority.
But before that, when he was a law student at Usac, he was part of an electoral body related to Mazariegos in 2022, and supported an election that to date is accused of fraud by academic opponents.
No filters
The Nomination Commissions Law defines the participation of the deans in the nominations in an unclear manner, according to the analysis of Guatemala Visible and Alianza por las Reformas.
“With the appointment of a dean, one is already part of the application committees, although as of today there are no graduated professionals. Nor are we certain that these universities are already teaching classes,” reflected Mynor Lorenzo, analyst at Guatemala Visible.
Throughout 17 years of inspection, Lorenzo highlights that the Law on Application Commissions has gaps, since there are no major filters for universities to join future applicants.
“Far from having formalized centers, there is talk of cardboard universities, only to gain space and have opportunities to influence the election of high-level officials,” commented the expert.
For his part, Juan Pablo Muñoz, representative of Alianza por las Reformas, also sees the same risks, and comments that it seems that the filters for the creation of universities are not respected.
“The creation of universities for the appointment of high authorities causes a crisis in university quality, in addition to institutional co-option. Education is not ensured here, universities are created with minimum requirements,” said.
For him, it is risky for democracy that Mazariegos, questioned a second time for fraud in the USAC, has a voice and vote with loyal and servile deans
“The creation of universities for the appointment of high authorities generates a crisis in university quality, in addition to institutional cooptation, education is not ensured here, universities are created with minimum requirements,” he pointed out.
Next year the CGC will be important for the 2027 general elections, since it is the entity in charge of issuing the Transitory Certificate of Non-existence of Claim of Charges, or popularly known as settlement.
This document is one of the essential requirements for the TSE Citizen Registry to process any political candidacy, not counting the oversight role that the CGC has.
In recent weeks, it has been the Comptroller’s Office that warned that Walter Mazariegos did not have the necessary settlement to be a candidate for rector, which raised new questions about his participation for the position.
Next call
The Permanent Commission of Congress convened the plenary session of deputies for an extraordinary session on June 2, which among the different agenda items includes convening the nomination commission for Comptroller General of Accounts.
This postulator is chaired by a rector elected by the Forum of Rectors, who in his last participation in the nomination commissions appointed Mynor Herrera, rector of Universidad Panamericana as representative in the TSE postulator.
Herrera’s appointment caused doubts among academics, according to sources who prefer not to be cited, since since November of last year it had been agreed that the position for the postulator would go to Roberto Moreno, rector of the UVG.
Now, the future call that Congress will make requires that the Forum of Rectors will have to agree again to elect the president of said postulator.