Luis Parada, presidential candidate for the opposition Nuestro Tiempo party, maintains that Nayib Bukele’s potential second term, despite the president’s high approval ratings, should not be recognized due to constitutional violations.
With 80% support in the polls, Bukele remains the favorite. However, he has evaded constitutional restrictions following a 2021 ruling by the Constitutional Chamber, controversially made up of former advisors and lawyers of his administration, appointed by Congress dominated by his own Nuevas Ideas party, the Efe news agency published.
Parada’s stance underscores the tension between Bukele’s popularity and legal precedents.
“A second government of Nayib Bukele, starting on June 1, 2024, would be unconstitutional, illegitimate and illegal. It should not be recognized by any Salvadoran, regardless of what other countries do,” said Luis Parada.
The opponent occupies fourth place in voting intentions with 2.5%, according to polls.
El Salvador would have a new Constitution
Parada suggested that the ruling party in El Salvador could try to implement a new Constitution that allows indefinite reelection, a prospect that President Nayib Bukele previously denied on January 4, when he recalled that his country’s laws do not allow indefinite reelection nor does it exist. a mechanism such as a plebiscite to modify the Constitution.
Contradictorily, in 2021, during an interview with Mexican YouTubers, Bukele stated that he would leave office at the age of 42, since El Salvador does not allow re-election.
Luis Parada, an international litigation lawyer, sees the upcoming elections as a last chance to democratically remove a leader he considers deceitful.
The Nuestro Tiempo candidate, who resigned his rank of captain after Bukele’s emergence into Congress with armed forces in 2020, considers Sunday’s elections to be the most crucial in Salvadoran history.
“It will define what type of country it will be. It is going to be a country that lives in freedom, in democracy and with respect for the laws or it is a country that is going to be in the hands of a dictator,” he said.
The United States government has adopted a passive position regarding the legality of Nayib Bukele’s candidacy; however, its silence does not imply support for the resolution that facilitated his nomination.
During his electoral campaign, the president requested his re-election and that of a qualified majority of his party in Congress. Likewise, he has warned that the opposition would release gang members if they obtained at least one seat.
Parada has assured that imprisoned gang members will not be released and has criticized the lack of a plan that addresses the roots of the gang problem, such as economic deprivation and social exclusion. He points out that secret agreements and mere incarceration are not the solution, refuting accusations that the Government has negotiated with these criminal gangs.
The United States has sanctioned two senior officials in El Salvador for allegedly coordinating secret truce negotiations with imprisoned gang leaders, including MS-13 bosses.
In the political sphere, an attempt is made to encourage electoral participation of at least 80% to guarantee a second round in the elections.
Luis Parada has promised that if elected, within his first 100 days in office, he will report on the corruption of the current government and provide evidence of abuses to the judiciary. This candidate also plans to prioritize the economy, agriculture, the environment and immigration issues as part of his agenda.
Keep reading:
• The electoral campaign ends in El Salvador for elections with Bukele as the favorite
• President of Guatemala believes that in Ecuador there is a “fatal combination” between corruption and crime
• Jon Lee Anderson: Trumpist populism already has clones: Nayib Bukele and Javier Milei