Government of Ecuador suspends Vice President Verónica Abad for 150 days amid a wave of criticism

( Spanish) – The Ministry of Labor of Ecuador announced this Saturday an administrative resolution that suspends the Vice President of the Republic, Verónica Abad, for 150 days without pay, arguing that she has committed “unjustified abandonment of work for three or more consecutive work days.” Abad currently serves as ambassador to Israel, in addition to being vice president.

According to the government resolution, Abad would have incurred “abandonment from work”, by not having presented himself at the Ecuadorian embassy in Turkey on September 1 as arranged, but on September 9 (5 business days of absence are counted in the resolution. ). In the context of tensions over the Israeli conflict in Gaza, Abad was transferred to Ankara for security reasons.

Vice President Abad has also served as Ecuador’s ambassador to Israel since November 2023, after President Daniel Noboa appointed her as a delegate for peace after maintaining public friction and differences with her since before assuming power. Abad accepted the diplomatic mission without failing to express his disagreement with the designation.

The report from the Ministry of Labor that sanctions Abad, describes as a “serious misconduct” the fact that he showed up after the date set at the Turkish embassy, ​​and also establishes the suspension of his remuneration for 150 days.

is trying to contact Vice President Abad for her comments on the matter.

Abad has repeatedly maintained that the actions brought by members of the Government against him are intended to prevent him from assuming the presidency of the Republic when it is his turn, by constitutional provision, to replace Noboa during the presidential campaign that begins in January 2025.

At the end of September, Abad, in an interview with , stated that Noboa seeks to disqualify her and break a constitutional order that determines that the vice president will replace the president during the electoral campaign days established by the National Electoral Council; This is 30 days for the first round (from January 5 to February 6, 2025) and, in case of going to the second round, another 18 days (from March 24 to April 10).

“His actions and what he has done through his ministers in an entire cabinet trying to ensure that this constitutional order cannot be given,” he said.

Last August, Abad filed a complaint for alleged “political violence” against President Noboa before the Contentious Electoral Court (TCE).

Noboa, through a statement, rejected Abad’s complaint and accused her of trying to attack the popular will.

“She wants the president of the Republic out of power, so that she can assume that position. If there was any doubt about her intentions, today her mask finally fell (…) It is evident that the vice president plays a role in a much larger plot,” Noboa published.

Criminal lawyer and academic Paulina Araujo described the measure as “nonsense.”

“Legal nonsense is taking over. The power didn’t like you, it’s after you. It humiliates you, despises you, persecutes you and then nullifies you. From bad to worse,” he wrote in X.

The constitutional lawyer José Chalco wrote in his X account that there is a lack of seriousness in the resolution. “If you miss three days of work then, I sanction you with missing 150 more days (suspended). Let’s be serious! The Constitution provides express causes for the temporary absence of a vice president and is never a summary sanction. This is not about affection, it is about constitutional order,” he pointed out.

“In the face of such a serious violation of the rule of law as the suspension of the vice president, silence is not prudence, it is complicity,” said criminal lawyer Pablo Encalada.

The human rights lawyer and former director of the Guayas Judiciary Council, María Josefa Coronel, expressed that this decision does not respect the law. “Bending the law: Does Ecuador deserve a president who bends the law? Did Correismo do the same when the law threatened or questioned power? Interesting to note: Noboa is doing the same thing. “See that!” he questioned.

Candidates for the presidency of Ecuador also spoke out

Henry Cucalón, of the Construye movement, wrote that the resolution is an attack on democracy.

“The sanction against the person who holds the vice presidency—with respect to whom I have made my differences public—in substance and form is unconstitutional and illegal. All this with a single objective: that he cannot replace the president in the electoral campaign. “The Assembly is obliged to establish political responsibilities for the head of the Ministry who caused this outrage,” he stated.

While the presidential candidate for the Correísta Citizen Revolution movement, Luisa González, described the event as a political device. “This maneuver seeks to prevent Abad from assuming the Presidency while he campaigns, violating both the Constitution and rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. “We are seeing how power is used without scruples to neutralize opponents,” he published.

For his part, candidate Jimmy Jairala, of the Democratic Center Movement, believes that the Government overstepped its bounds. “Verónica Abad, as acting vice president of the Republic, can only be subject to control and supervision by the National Assembly. The Law is for everyone and everyone has to comply with it, but the Ministry of Labor has exceeded its powers,” he noted.