The La Nueva Victoria Correction and Rehabilitation Center, which was built in the Las Parras sector, in the San Antonio de Guerra municipality, at an approximate cost of seven million pesos and whose first phase was inaugurated on August 10, 2020, by the Former President Danilo Medina and former Attorney General Jean Alain Rodríguez, today detained on charges of administrative corruption, have been in the process of being audited since January 25.
The Chamber of Accounts of the Republic (CCRD) informed Diario Libre that the investigation is carried out at the request of the Specialized Attorney for the Persecution of Administrative Corruption (PEPCA).
This survey covers the period from August 2016 to August 2020, in accordance with Plenary Decision #DEC-2021-079 dated June 2, 2021 and is carried out at the request of the Specialized Attorney for the Prosecution of Administrative Corruption ( PEPCA).
“It is good that they understand that the audits are planned, but sometimes, depending on the findings that may arise and the lines of work that could be started, the term could be extended a little more,” said Janel Andrés Ramírez, president of the Plenary of the Chamber of Accounts.
He also added that the body he directs is not here to persecute anyone, but to make the reality of managing public funds public through reports.
Last July, the head of the General Directorate of Persecution of the Public Ministry, Yeni Berenice Reynoso, assured that the Humanization Plan of the Penitentiary System was “a fraud” and that as a result some prisons would have to be demolished, including a part of La New Victory.
On his side, Roberto Hernández Basilio, General Director of Prisons, stated that, in order to give continuity to the project, they must wait for the Chamber of Accounts to conclude with the audit.
“Perhaps after that expert report, the State can resume the project, if its technical construction conditions allow it, because we must remember that it is built on a swampy area and almost on top of a large lagoon,” he said.
When asked what would be the budget that the work would take in case it is decided to conclude it, he indicated that this issue should be determined in the future, but that “obviously, it will require more resources.”
Without wanting to advance “any judgment” about the state of La Nueva Victoria, Hernández stressed that the MP understands that it was a bad decision to build this project on a swamp.
“Also, even at first glance it seems impractical in a country that, like the Dominican Republic, is often affected by major storms and even hurricanes.
We all know that, when storms or hurricanes are announced that can affect us, the Penitentiary System has to mobilize some prisoners from certain centers. It is the reality and, for that reason, building prisons must contemplate a series of requirements to avoid inconveniences”, specified the director of Prisons.
Meanwhile, he expressed that in order to know if the construction will be functional or not, the results of the audit and the technical evaluation reports of the infrastructure must be awaited.
A few weeks ago, a team from Diario Libre went to Las Parras where they were able to contact the state of abandonment in which La Nueva Victoria finds itself, with the access roads destroyed, the guard booth unfinished, while the undergrowth is what gives the welcome visitors and its buildings have been losing their color.
Neighbors of the place cry out to President Luis Abinader to finish it and put it into operation, because in his opinion it has become a breeding ground for snakes, rats and cockroaches.
