The Minister Secretary General of the Presidency (Segpres), Giorgio Jackson, flatly ruled out the possibility of advancing elections in the event that the citizens were inclined to approve the proposal for a new Constitution that emanates from the Constituent Convention. “I am of the idea that a popular election to choose the new political representatives before the year 2025 is impracticable,” declared the minister who serves as liaison between La Moneda and the National Congress.
“Each of these mandates for the creation of new bodies, beyond the constitutional mandate, must also have laws. Let’s imagine the calendar of each of these things, my impression is that before the year 2025 it will be very difficult to have laws approved for the implementation of all those elections that will have to be in the future”, Jackson assured The Mercury.
Along these lines, and in order to make the transition from one constitutional regime to another less traumatic, the head of Segpres stated that “I am of the idea that there should be a more fluid conversation between the constituted power and the constituent power, not only the Government, the municipalities, the regional governments, the Justice or Judiciary systems, and Congress itself,” said Jackson, who later added that “there will be things that can be implemented quickly, others that need medium times, and some that will exceed one or two governments.
On the occasion, Jackson tried to allay the fears regarding certain innovations contained in the draft of the constitutional proposal, such as the limits of “indigenous justice” that supposes the supremacy of the Supreme Court and the implications of the “Plurinational State”. “Recognizing that Chile is a country that is made up of diverse traditions, cultures and worldviews, rather than doing harm to the country, it does it good. It seems to me that it is an advance for mutual recognition (…) it tells me about a country that wants to heal its history for a peaceful coexistence, ”he pointed out.
Also, Giorgio Jackson highlighted the work of the conventional despite the criticism launched from various sectors more identified with the defense of the current institutionality, since so far “the draft has positive things in terms of decentralization, fundamental agreements for the rights , has principles, advanced aspects in environmental matters. Several central aspects of the political system remain pending, which is where tensions are probably most centered.
The head of the Segpres called on the representatives of the constituted power to approach the conventional ones to hold a dialogue “as unprejudiced as possible” to defeat the caricatures that have arisen around various proposals, some controversial, such as the elimination of the Senate and its replacement by a Chamber of the Regions that effectively becomes the meat of the territorial representation on equal terms with the large urban centers.
This has been achieved by bringing positions closer together between those who wanted to maintain a mirror bicameralism as we know it and those who advocated a unicameral system. “More than elimination, it is the replacement by an institution that what it seeks is to explain the character of representation before the entire country,” he said, adding immediately that “I understand that they continue to seek consensus regarding the breadth of their powers and how much will be the extension of the transitory processes to reach that Chamber of the Regions”.
On another level, and after defending the decision to oppose a fifth withdrawal, Jackson referred to the polls that reveal an increase in the “Rejection” option in the face of the exit plebiscite, attributing such increase to communicational errors of the conventional and the fake news spread by those interested in maintaining the current fundamental letter. “All of this is a cocktail that is very difficult to deny one by one and has generated a climate favorable to Rejection,” said Jackson, who then called on the members of the body to take care of the process with judicious actions aimed at the common good.
