Costa Rica’s chief prosecutor Jorge Chavarria has filed charges against three political party “money men” who applied to the Supreme Elections Tribunal (TSE) for reimbursement for election expenses that were allegedly fraudulent. The billings to the TSE would have had taxpayers reimbursing political parties.
TSE filed a complaint regarding the 2010 general election in three blatant cases involving three of the major political parties.
The first such case to come to light was that of the Libertarian Movement vice president Rolando Alfaro and two ex-officials who filed for TSE reimbursement of 240 million colones for 190 internal education seminars to make minor official function better.
When TSE dug further, that watchdog body found that the informational chats simply were the products of someone’s fertile imagination. Most of the attendees cited by the party denied having attended any such session and one turned out to be a La Nacion reporter who was investigating the fraud story. He immediately recused himself from the report.
Alfaro was then treasurer of the Libertarian party. Prosecutors accuse him of fraud, attempted fraud and use of a false document. Also accused of complicity are Carlos Solano, ex-secretary of the training unit and Roger Segura, ex-party accountant.
The prosecutor also filed formal charges against San Jose lawmaker Oscar Alfaro for filing false claims for transportation expenses during the 2009-2010 campaign for the National Liberation Party. And a charge was filed against the Citizen Action Party for filing for reimbursement for payment of members who worked for free during the campaign.
Commentary: These charges probably will not be the last ones stemming from the 2010 campaigns. Costa Rica prides itself on its democratic system and certainly TSE’s holding the parties accountable justifies that pride. But a bill has been filed with the Legislative Assembly to take that function away from TSE.
This will leave the parties free to grope around in taxpayers’ pockets for any amount of false charges. Payment by the government for campaign expenses is to give smaller, less well heeled, parties a chance to compete with the big boys.
Instead, some party members, perhaps with the complicity of higher officials, have used this as a piñata, a windfall of found money. So far we have yet to hear a cry of outrage and this is worrisome. That noxious bill in the Legislative Assembly should have raised a firestorm.
If any of the parties feel a shred of shame over this betrayal of public trust, they should kick out for life any member convicted of wrongdoing. Is it any wonder that polls show a declining confidence in public officials and the political system?
Are we very far from the political aspirant who runs on the platform, “Vote por Fulano de Tal. He won’t steal very much.”
Source: iNews.co.cr
