The National Association of Officials of the Public Ministry (Anfumip) rejected, in an 11-page document, the nomination of the lawyer and director of the Specialized Anti-Corruption and Legal Unit of the prosecuting entity, martha herrera, as the new National Prosecutor. The association declared itself on “national alert” and pointed out that Herrera would be the continuity of the questioned former head of the Public Ministry George Abbott.
In a statement, Anfumip indicated that Herrera was a participant and trusted advisor to Abbott’s “disastrous administration.” In turn, they pointed out that after the administration of the former National Prosecutor, “the institution is weakened, discredited and does not enjoy the trust of the citizenry due to the inability to adequately assume its function.”
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Likewise, they maintained that Herrera “does not meet a profile of independence” and that she maintains internal commitments with current regional authorities and executives who “will remain with her at the head of the Public Ministry, perpetuating the current situation of stagnation, lack of modernization and innovation that currently characterizes the institution”.
Remember that the President gabriel boric nominated this Wednesday Marta Herrera as the new National Prosecutor. Herrera will have to make a presentation before the Constitution commission of the Senate and then the Upper House will vote on its ratification. For approval, she needs a quorum of 2/3.
Role in Abbott management
The Anfumip pointed out that Herrera had a “high degree of personal involvement as a close and trusted advisor to prosecutor Abbott in institutional decisions, for which she has been the protagonist and responsible and for which it is impossible that she can now legitimately stand out, arguing that I didn’t have the powers.”
“Marta Herrera’s career within the Public Prosecutor’s Office clearly shows that she has held senior management positions of exclusive trust of the national prosecutor for more than 17 years, placing her as a direct adviser and strong woman of the last two national prosecutors, Sabas Chahuán and Jorge Abbott. they continued.
“The latter (Abbott) endorsed that she continue to exercise the double role of director of the Legal Advice Unit, which is equivalent to an internal Prosecutor’s Office and director of the Anti-Corruption Unit, holding a grade 3 of the managerial ladder, with significant power, high influence and direct responsibility in the highest decisions of the institutional authorities”, they added.
They also pointed out that Abbott appointed Herrera as “spokesperson for the National Prosecutor’s Office during the most critical moments of his administration, being recognized as his trusted person.”
“Bad habits”
The Prosecutor’s officials explained that Herrera has promoted “bad practices” with “serious and negative consequences in the internal culture of the Public Ministry, by advising and endorsing interpretations and unfair, unfounded legal decisions, openly violating the rights of officials ” .
Along these lines, they accused that “Marta Herrera coordinated the development of a code of ethics and an integrity system, which in practice does not work, but she herself participated and viewed highly questionable institutional decisions from this point of view.”
The Anfumip also expressed that Herrera endorsed “the line and legal definitions of tolerance or concealment that Mr. Abbott adopted in the administrative investigations for mistreatment and workplace harassment exercised by managers or people close to her or the administration and that mainly affected women officials and also union leaders.
“Despite having proven the facts denounced and the quality of them as victims, the aggressors went unpunished,” they said.
