Ecuador: Movements Demand President Recall, Allege Corruption

The Ecuadorean movement Citizen Revolution (RC) gave on Tuesday a press conference led by former Foreign Affairs Minister Ricardo Patiño, to launch a recall process against the Ecuadorean president, after "denouncing a corruption plot that involves President Lenin Moreno and his family."

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Ricardo Patiño stated on his Twitter account, also on Tuesday, that a "true RECALL process starts today." The process will be done because President Lenin Moreno "1) Did not comply with the government plan; 2) Is destroying what we did in 10 years; 3) He handed over the power to Nebot, Bucaram and MPD (Ecuadorean politicians and movements.); 4) Dismissed workers and wants to sell properties of the people; 5) And, as denounced by Mashi, he has graduated as CORRUPT."

These new alleged corruption complaints are based on a "research journalism" article from the web media platform La Fuente, under the title: "The Offshore Labyrinth Of The Presidential Circle: A new character is discovered in the labyrinth of offshore companies belonging to the presidential family."

In the article, La Fuente states that furniture and an apartment in Spain would have been allegedly paid through offshore companies in Belize and Panama, supposedly related to President Lenin Moreno and his family, mainly his brother Edwin Moreno Garces.

“We concluded that president Lenin Moreno is desperate to hide his corruption and we are calling on the Prosecutor’s Office to investigate these allegations against Moreno”, said former Foreign Minister Ricardo Patiño, at the press conference, before calling on people to mobilize to the Carondelet Palace (Ecuadorean presidential palace), to protest against the president.

After the press conference, citizens gathered outside the government palace in Quito, capital of Ecuador, to ask for Lenin Moreno’s dismissal from the presidency. Former President Rafael Correa, also called for the mobilization against Moreno on  his Twitter account because "he has already done too much damage to the Homeland, and has humiliated it too much."

President Lenin Moreno stated, through the Communications Secretary, that he has "decided to summon the world community to create an International Commission Against Corruption, which I referred to during the electoral campaign." In response to the information about the president's brother involved on the offshore company, the anti-corruption Secretary Ivan Granda stated that the people involved should respond and that President Moreno ""Does not put himself on the linefor anyone."