The Costa Rican Congress rejected this Tuesday by just three votes a proposal requested by the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) to lift the immunity of the head of state Rodrigo Chaves, who accuses him of “endangering peace and stability in the Central American country” due to his criticism of the court.
“There are not enough elements to agree to the lifting of the immunity of Mr. Rodrigo Chaves,” said the president of the chamber, Rodrigo Arias, after the motion received 35 of the 38 votes needed for its approval.
A total of 21 MPs from the ruling Social Democratic Progressive Party and other parties such as the New Republic have rejected the measure. This is the second such vote surpassing Chaves. In September, Congress also failed to obtain the majority needed to remove presidential protections in the event of alleged irregular use of funds from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration.
In this case, the proposal was put forward by the TSE to advance its case against Chaves, whom it accuses of “political belligerence” that could lead to suspension from future public positions or even dismissal.
The court rejected criticism from the president, who said that the Justice Department had imposed a “gag law” on him to prevent the government from disseminating promotional information related to his mandate during the election campaign that began on October 1.
“If you untruthfully accuse my actions and those of my colleagues on the court of partisan bias (…), you are attacking the credibility of the institution we lead, the upcoming electoral process and the result that we will certify,” said TSE President Eugenia Zamora at the end of October. “It threatens the peace and political stability of the country and, I repeat, we cannot allow that,” he said.
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