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Pacheco Says He Will Stay to the
End
There were no cabinet defections
announced yesterday, following
the announcement by Transport
Minister, Javier Chaves and
Exterior Minister, Alberto
Trejos, on Tuesday.
The
resignation by Chaves and Trejos
came on the heels of the the
resignation of Minister for the
Presidency, Ricardo Toledo, on
Monday and Revenue Minister,
Alberto Dent, the week earlier.
President Pacheco called an
emergency session of his
government to ask his cabinet
Ministers if they want to
continue in their posts.
Pacheco told the press following
the meeting, that each cabinet
Minister made the promise not to
quit.
Pacheco added, however, that if
someone in his government wants
to leave, he cannot tell them
"no".
The meeting was called to shore
the wave of resignations that
have embattled his government in
the past two weeks, and the low
confidence in the public's eye
of how the country is being
managed.
Rumours were flying around
Presidencial House yesterday
morning on the possible
resignation of
Ministro de Relaciones
Exteriores, Roberto Tovar, after
criticism on the revelation that
Costa Rica's name was added to
the list of countries publicly
committed to the U.S. coalition
in Iraq.
Pacheco confirmed, "Ni me muero,
ni me voy...Aquí me tendrán los
costarricenses hasta el 8 de
mayo de 2006 con todo gusto y
con todo amor”.
"Nor will I die, nor will I
go... Costa Ricans will have me
until the 8th of May of 2006
with all the pleasure and love".
Comptroller Says Riteve Contract
Has Monopolistic Tendencies
Alex Solís Fallas, Contralor de
la República (Comptroller),
appeared yesterday before a
Legislative committee which is
looking into the the
government's contract with
Riteve SA, that has the
exclusive contract for all
vehicular inspection in Costa
Rica.
The commission was set up
following more than a week of
protests and blockades from
citizens who demanded that the
government annul the Riteve
contract, as well as raise
public employee salaries and not
pass the free trade agreement
with the U.S. - Tratado Libre de
Comercio (TLC).
Solís, himself has been the
object of an investigation
following his appointment a
couple of months ago, for
falsifying his brother's (former
presidential candidate, Otton
Solís) signature on a legal
document and providing high cost
loans to Costa Ricans who want
to travel illegaly to the U.S.
Yesterday, Solís, told the
commission that the Riteve
contract is valid though it has
monopolistic tendencies, which
are contrary to the Ley de
tránsito y la Constitución
Política.
He added that, the contract has
been given to only one company
and though they (Riteve) don't
set the price for it's services,
it does have the final decision
if a vehicle passes the
inspection or needs to be
re-inspected, which it now
charges one half of the orginal
fee.
The charge for re-inspection can
into effect in July of this
year, after the Ministerio de
Obras Publicas y Transport (MOPT)
refused an approve an increase
in Riteve's services.
Solís remarked that the MOPT has
the obligation to promote a
"Technical College for vehicular
inspection professionals",
however, this should not affect
the financial balance and the
obligation it has with Riteve.
Costa Rica
Tells U.S to Delist Off 'Coalition of
Willing'
Costa Rica's Constitutional
Court has ruled that the
country's name cannot be
included by the United States as
part of a “coalition” in the
Iraq conflict, and Costa Rican
officials are demanding their
country be stricken from the
list.
Costa Rica apparently never
formally joined the U.S.-led
coalition, but its name was
listed on a White House Web page
of coalition members, sparking
widespread anger in a country
where the Iraq war is enormously
unpopular.
Following Wednesday's ruling,
Costa Rica – which has no army
and never sent any troops to
Iraq – is making it clear it
does not want to be listed as a
member of the coalition.
Foreign Minister Roberto Tovar
said in a statement that “every
Costa Rican, and especially
every public servant, is bound
to obey these judicial
resolutions.”
“The first thing Thursday, we
will send the appropriate
diplomatic note asking that the
name of our country be removed
from the list of the so-called
coalition,” Mr. Tovar said.
The seven-justice court ruled
that the inclusion of Costa Rica
violated the country's
constitution.
The ruling came on a motion by
Attorney-General Farid Beirute,
who argued that the constitution
bars support for military action
that is not authorized by the
United Nations.
He also said the list violates
the country's pacifist
constitutional principles.
Controversy over the issue
erupted when local newspapers
noted that the White House had
listed Costa Rica as a member of
the coalition “that has already
begun military operations to
disarm Iraq of its weapons of
mass destruction.”
Mr. Tovar and President Abel
Pacheco acknowledged signing a
statement of support for the
United States on March 19, 2003,
that is quoted on the White
House Web site, but they
insisted it was support merely
for the fight against terrorism,
not for an invasion of Iraq, as
the U.S. statement implied.
The White House page in question
reads “Forty-nine countries are
publicly committed to the
Coalition, including ... Costa
Rica.”
Dated Feb. 4, 2004, the Web page
continues: “Contributions from
Coalition member nations range
from: direct military
participation, logistical and
intelligence support,
specialized chemical/biological
response teams, over-flight
rights, humanitarian and
reconstruction aid, to political
support.”
Costa Rica’s Fiscal Reform
Plan Resurrected From The Dead,
By Leroy Baker, Tax-News.com
After Costa Rica’s long awaited
and much troubled tax reform
bill was declared dead by
certain lawmakers last month,
the proposals may yet be
approved by the end of the year
after receiving the kiss of life
from the country’s
Constitutional Court.
In July, the passage of the
Fiscal Reform Package was halted
after the Constitutional Chamber
of the Supreme Court, Sala IV,
accepted an action by two
deputies who accused the former
president of the Legislative
Assembly, Mario Redondo, of
violating the Constitution by
acting with secrecy and without
the required approval of
two-thirds of lawmakers in an
attempt to accelerate the debate
on the tax plan last March.
However, according to a report
in the Tico Times, Sala IV has
rejected all of the actions
brought by the deputies,
clearing the way for the
proposals to be put before a
Legislative Assembly vote.
It is an amazing turnaround of
events, especially after the
Patriotic Bloc legislative
deputy Humberto Arce, a member
of several of the commissions
that have studied and modified
the plan, last month declared
that “the fiscal plan is dead.”
“The situation for the fiscal
reform looks promising,”
Redondo, congressman for the
ruling Social Christian Unity,
told the Times, adding that the
proposals may be voted on during
the first half of October and
approved by the end of November.
The former Finance Minister
Alberto Dent, a supporter of
measures who recently resigned,
was quoted as observing: “We
took a plan that was completely
stalled, completely dead, and
have practically steered it to
its final phase.”
“The fiscal reform will bring
the country years of stability,”
he continued.
“I believe it's worthwhile
because it not only allows for
fair taxation by ensuring those
who have the most pay the most,
it also stabilizes the country
by practically eliminating the
(fiscal) deficit,” argued Dent.
The Permanent Fiscal Reform Plan
was first conceived two years
ago to bolster the government’s
tax revenues, pay off the
country’s growing foreign debt,
and reduce the deficit to 2.65%
of GDP through a series of tax
hikes and improved collection
methods.
Authorities Close Saprissa
Soccer Stadium Over Debts
Saprissa
Stadium was temporarily closed
by the Costa Rica government on
Thursday to enforce payment of a
debt the Saprissa sports
organization owes the Caja
Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS).
The soccer stadium, home of the
national champion Saprissa club,
will remain closed for five
days.
It was the venue on Wednesday
for a World Cup qualifier in
which Costa Rica defeated Canada
1-0, and was to have hosted two
matches this weekend.
If the estimated US$500,000 debt
owed for 1995-1999 are not paid,
the stadium could be closed for
another eight-day period, CCSS
authorities said.
Saprissa spokesman Manuel Muñoz
accused the authorities of being
"intransigent." In a press
statement, he noted the team had
already paid about US$2.2
million in debts.
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