By Luis de Jesus
01 Dec 2023, 16:46 PM EST
Nayib Bukele left the Presidency of El Salvador this Friday to dedicate himself to the presidential campaign for immediate re-election in next year’s general elections.
“Grant leave to the President of the Republic, Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez, for a period of six months, from December 1, 2023 to May 31, 2024, which must be exercised without pay and with all the prerogatives that the position holds,” states the decree cited by Efe.
Legislators also voted for Nayib Bukele, who did not appear in person for the vote, to retain his immunity. For this reason, they will not be able to criminally prosecute him in the coming months without the complaint first going through Congress.
The decree, which was approved with 67 votes of the 84 deputies and with a waiver of procedures, also indicates that a license is granted to Vice President Félix Ulloa, who will seek re-election along with Bukele for the ruling Nuevas Ideas party.
The document also clarifies that: “At no time does (the permit) generate a break in the link between the official and the body he represents, but rather it only suspends the exercise of the powers or the public function required by his position.”
He adds that this implies that the now presidential candidate will no longer exercise the administrative function or activity that the position of president of El Salvador entails, but he will not give up the investiture of the position and the prerogatives he has.
The news agency points out that the license is the last requirement established by the ruling issued by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court, which has been strongly questioned by sectors of the opposition, who denounce the unconstitutionality of the process.
Nayib Bukele’s opponents have stated that the appointment of the Court’s judges occurred irregularly and have recalled that a president must wait at least 10 years after completing his term to run again.
The Presidency of El Salvador will now be headed by Claudia Juana Rodríguez Guevara, who was the politician’s private secretary, after receiving approval from the Salvadoran Congress, with 67 votes in favor and 11 against. She will perform these functions until May 31, 2024.
Keep reading:
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