ECUADORIAN LAWMAKERS DENOUNCE ASSEMBLY’S DISBANDING

Ecuadorian lawmakers who were ousted when President Guillermo Lasso dissolved the National Assembly denounced the move Thursday and argued it wasn’t legal because the country wasn’t facing any urgent crisis.

The conservative president, who had sparred with the left-leaning assembly over his pro-business agenda since taking office in 2021, disbanded the chamber Wednesday just as it tried to oust him on mismanagement allegations in an impeachment trial.

Lasso was making first use of a 2008 constitutional provision that allows the president to dissolve the assembly during times of political crisis, with the requirement that new elections be held for both lawmakers and the president.

However, a lawsuit filed Thursday by the assembly’s former head, Virgilio Saquicela, argues that Lasso’s move violated the constitution because the country was not experiencing any social upheaval.

Instead, Lasso’s detractors have argued, the president chose to disband the chamber merely to avoid his own ouster.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Saquicela slammed Lasso’s move as a last-minute ploy to avoid his removal once it became clear that was under way. “When he saw that he didn’t have the votes, he got scared.”

Saquicela’s lawsuit — and two other challenges filed previously — are before the country’s Constitutional Court, which is known to act slowly. Lawmakers have been urging the panel to act quickly this time.

“We require, we demand an immediate pronouncement from the Constitutional Court,” Saquicela said.

Meanwhile, the National Electoral Council is moving forward with setting a date for elections. Council President Diana Atamaint told the Teleamazonas television network that the electoral body has until Wednesday to decide. The tentative date is Aug. 20. If needed, a runoff would take place Oct. 15.

The constitution allows the president to dissolve the assembly when it oversteps its mandate under the constitution or during times of “serious political crisis and internal commotion.”

Minister of Government Henry Cucalón defended Lasso’s decision during a news conference Thursday, arguing that the constitution makes it clear that the dismissal is up to the president’s “judgment, criteria, discretion and reason,” and that it does not require approval of any other entity.