Marcelo Duarte, former deputy and former senator, aspires to return to Congress, 10 years later, considering that his last year as a parliamentarian was in 2013 as a senator for Patria Querida (PPQ).
He affirms that he wants to focus on the purification of the laws, taking into account that there are many redundant and others even contradictory, which overload the national legislation.
Who is Marcelo Duarte?
I am a citizen who has faith and confidence in his country and I have given much of my life in service to him. And I will do it again with great pleasure. I have been a senator and deputy before. I have devoted myself wholeheartedly to this task. I have ruled on hundreds of bills as chairman of the Legislation Committee. Just to cite a few examples, the Criminal Code, the criminal procedure, all the modifications of the Code of Childhood and Adolescence. And so on. Practically all the codes that were sanctioned in the last 20 years. I was 10 years away from the legislature and now I think it is time to return. Our country is going through a moment of demoralization, people have lost faith in their political leaders and there are plenty of reasons for that. It is time to rebuild trust in citizens and their political leaders. In my case, in its legislators, we have seen embarrassing episodes in the legislature, comings and goings within the congress that are pitiful.
How was your return?
I have always talked about politics with the people of Patria Querida, because it is the party to which I belong and I am one of its founders, but more than anything it was my decision. I must thank the leadership of the party for the welcome and I see that also, all the affiliates with whom I have had the opportunity to talk and others who are not affiliated but are sympathizers. In Patria Querida there is a modality where one can register only for this election, that is not equivalent to affiliation. As you know, we participated in the agreement on the presidential badge for president and vice president, the candidacy of Villarejo and Dos Santos.
How do you see the management of the current parliamentarians?
We are excited about the possibility of contributing again to Congress and making not only the Beloved Homeland but also the Parliament show signs of sobriety in its performance. It seems unheard of to me that they have made decisions, such as the elimination of the committee opinion as a requirement to deal with the issues in plenary. That means that parliamentarians are going to find themselves with projects that they do not know about. Since the commissions, if they do not rule, have no reason to exist. And so in the case of political trials, you can’t give the shows that were seen lately. Either the affected person is prosecuted or not, but we cannot spend five days just talking about accusations. That is really unfortunate and lends itself to all kinds of speculation.
What will be your axes of work in the event that you are elected?
Reviewing the large number of projects that enter annually, the first thing to do is define an order of priority. Legislative invasion must be combated, there are laws that have no reason to exist, they are more of the same, so national legislation is overloaded. Sometimes, there are even contradictions, that must be cleared up. There are aspects in the life of a country that must be prioritized, such as health and education, which are quite messy in their management. And although the administration is in charge of the Executive, from the Legislative we can give it a north towards what we consider essential for the new generations.
How do you see the possibilities of the Agreement with a view to 2023?
The Concertación has a good opportunity but it has to transmit a clear and open message to all citizens. Since both independents and a large number of Colorados are demanding a change in our country. And that change can have a hope from new people in the administration of the Executive. The administration of the country is exclusively in charge of the Executive, the president and the vice president. Both have an unavoidable role, so that if we seriously want change we must start with the Executive. This is the opportunity that citizens should think about it well and give those of us who until today were the opposition a chance.
