The Board of Directors of the Congress did not comply with suspending the salary increase of the deputies, and the economic benefit remains days after receiving a new payment, confirmed the first vice president of the legislative agency, Jorge Castro.
On March 25, the majority of members of the Directive, led by its president, Nery Ramos, along with some block leaders, offered a press conference in which they promised to suspend the increase in salary for the deputies.
But after the holiday of Holy Week and when resuming its functions, the version of the directive of the Congress is another. He states that the salary increase is maintained because a legal report of Congress prevents them from fulfilling the promise they announced four weeks ago.
“According to the normal administrative procedure, the increase is in force. Right now there has not been a process for which, in some way, the corresponding article cannot be repealed,” Castro said.
The first vice president headed the meeting of block leaders in the absence of Ramos, who, according to the Department of Social Communication of Congress, was in a meeting. However, the social networks of Parliament did not document the diligence of its president as they usually do.
After the meeting of block leaders, an agenda was agreed for the plenary session on Thursday, which only includes interpellations to the Ministers of Health, Social Development, Communications and Environment, discarding the slightest possibility to discuss before the plenary the suspension of the increase in salary.
“We manifest the suspension and for that in the minutes the legal analysis of which the process should be for it is established. However, the Board of Directors, once we have the legal opinion, does not have the powers. The Board of Directors will be the plenary, specifically that is why it remains in force,” Castro justified.
The deputy denied that the press conference on March 25 was a mockery to the nation that was manifested against the increase. “In no way, on the contrary, the corresponding space was sought to see if the Board of Directors could execute it,” he said.
What they said before
On that occasion, the press conference was headed by Ramos, who crossed out “hypocrites and opportunists” to parliamentarians – without mentioning names or blocks – who remained silent with the salary increase approved by the Plenary in November last year. But today that his functions were resumed, it was the president who was not present to respond due to the validity of the increase in economic benefit.
Ramos declared four weeks ago that the decision made by the directive was agreed by the majority of block leaders and other deputies, who said, they heard the citizen demands.
“Errating is humans, but wisdom lies in the capacity and humility to rectify and listen to the people of Guatemala. In that sense, personally and in collective, as a board of directors and together with various blocks of this congress, we have reached an agreement,” Ramos said.
That day, who explained the procedure was Vice President Castro, who now assures that it is not possible to comply with that promise. “We have made the decision to suspend the salary leveling (…) Mr. President has summoned an extraordinary meeting to be able to capture those details,” Castro said at that conference and remains on the YouTube channel of Congress.
No postures
Some block leaders consulted after the session that allowed the Plenary to convene for the interpellations of ministers preferred to be cautious in their statements, ensuring that the matter is still under study.
“That is an issue that is in the national debate, at the time it will be known and discuss that situation that has generated a lot of political problem. We are going to be respectful of the decision of the majority,” said Inés Castillo, head of the block of the National Unity of Hope (UNE).
According to Castillo, the UNE block, one of the majority of Congress, has not taken a position. Apparently, they still do not define an eventual support for some motion to suspend the salary increase.
Essuin Javier Javier, a deputy elected for the Change Party, who was related to Manuel Baldizón’s family in the 2023 elections, said that the eventual suspension of the salary increase is not something that affects him.
“At the time the budget extension was agreed, it was because some colleagues said they had more than 20 years of not having an increase in salary. Personally, not alive of politics, I have my companies,” he said.
Some parliamentarians say that, due to the disbursement dynamics that Congress has, they could be receiving their April remuneration next Thursday. This would be the third payment with the salary increase authorized by the Board of Directors of Ramos and Castro, to pay.
The deputies who do not integrate the Board of Directors receive monthly Q61 thousand 300, and the president of Congress, Q97 thousand 300, according to the salary payrolls of the page of the legislative agency.