SANTO DOMINGO. The president of the constitutional Court (TC), Judge Milton Ray Guevara, affirmed that with its jurisprudential work this high court has protected and will continue to protect Dominican sovereignty and nationality.
In his accountability speech on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the court, Dr. Ray Guevara referred to judgments such as TC/0315/15 and TC/0168/13, which reaffirm that commitment assumed by the Plenary of judges since the creation of the TC.
«The protection of Dominicanness by the Constitutional Court has not only been in defense of sovereignty. It has also manifested itself by establishing the profiles for acquiring nationality, recognizing the unique and invariable character of the national anthem, protecting and recognizing the fundamental rights defended by the Constitution and the rule of law, as well as taking care of the cultural and historical heritage of the nation,” he said.
Judge Ray Guevara announced as an achievement of transcendental importance for the TC the obtaining of the Anti-Bribery Management System (SGAS) certification, under the international standard ISO 37001, to prevent and eliminate fraudulent practices and mitigate bribery risks, ensuring the sustainability of a culture based on values in the jurisdictional, financial and administrative processes of human talent.
In this regard, he maintained the view that the jurisdictional power and, in particular, the Constitutional Court, have to lead by example, equipping themselves with mechanisms to prevent and sanction practices constituting the scourge of corruption, which has struck public property and shaken the national conscience, harming the most vulnerable sectors of the country and our development plans.
“With the sacred respect for due process, strengthened by the multiple decisions of the TC, it is not possible that the jurisdictional power does not try to set an example, thus serving as an essential ally of the public powers in the fight against impunity and corruption” projection.
An excellent jurisdictional and pedagogical work
The president of the TC affirmed that the high court has carried out extraordinary work that stands out in two aspects: the jurisdictional and the pedagogical, and that Dominican jurisprudence continues to open furrows to strengthen the social and democratic State of law that has the citizen as its subject essential.
Regarding jurisdictional work, Judge Milton Ray Guevara highlighted that in 2022, 757 files entered that high court and 532 sentences were issued, which added to those of previous years represent 6,300 sentences in eleven years of intense work.
«The decisions of the TC have represented an encouragement so that we never lose sight of the fact that the Constitution is our guide, since with each precedent the constitutional mandates become vivid and become binding sources of law, essential for the defense of the supremacy of the Constitution. Constitution, the defense of the constitutional order and the protection of fundamental rights, where the Constitutional Court constitutes its guarantor and supreme defender”, he pointed out.
The president of the TC announced the creation of the first Constitutional Innovation, Intelligence and Experience Laboratory, aimed at the progressive strengthening of jurisdictional and administrative activities, through the transversal inclusion of exponential technologies and intelligent digital tools.
Judge Ray Guevara recounted the most relevant sentences for their innovative contributions to Dominican jurisprudence, among which he cited TC/0052/22, TC/0079/22, TC/0094/22, TC/0185/22, TC/0138/22, TC/0234/22, TC/0265/22, TC/0332/22, TC/0338/22, TC/0405/22, TC/0411/22, TC/0415/22, and TC /0484/22.
He recalled that 92 sentences that are pending execution by public authorities and private entities rest in the constitutional body.
Teaching of the Constitution in schools
Dr. Ray Guevara was once again in favor of teaching the Constitution in schools from preschool to high school “ceasing to be a pending subject” in the country.
«Educating in the Constitution is not moral and civic training, it is training them in the principles and values of the Constitution. Educating in the Constitution is paving the way to build, from the first day of school, citizens clinging to the fulfillment of their duties, aware of their rights and capable of demanding, when necessary, through guarantees (arts. 68-73) , respect and recognition of their fundamental rights,” he emphasized.
He added that training in the Constitution must be comprehensive and transversal and that minors must have the tools to demand the cessation of the violation of their rights. “I repeat, the training must be comprehensive and transversal, and I repeat, I will not tire of demanding actual compliance with article 63, numeral 13 of the Constitution,” said magistrate Ray Guevara.
Other important topics
The president of the TC referred to other issues, among which the recent inauguration and start-up of the legation of the Secretariat in Santiago de los Caballeros stands out, as well as the initiation of a procedure to streamline the process of sending and receiving documents. files.
He also referred to the constant work of review and validation of its procedures that this court has, as well as the bidding processes that are contracted through UNDP.
He spoke about the institutional environmental responsibility program, the remodeling of the Juan Pablo Duarte building, which houses the main headquarters of the TC, and the progress of the jurisdictional building, as well as the human capital management developed by the institution and that benefits its collaborators.
Judge Ray Guevara recalled that it is the 210th anniversary of the birth of Juan Pablo Duarte, considered the first Dominican constitutionalist, as well as a nationalist, patriot and anti-imperialist.
He concluded by recalling the importance of keeping alive the sentences handed down by Duarte, among which he mentioned: “The Dominican nation is free and independent and is not and can never be a member of any other power, neither the family patrimony nor any person of its own nor much less strange.”
