Top Cuenca attractions and restaurants; Odebrecht exec admits bribing Pólit and Glas; Referendum Q’s; Holiday agenda; Gasoline prices headed higher

Viernes, 12/4/2024

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –

De El Mercurio del jueves, 11/4 (1 article):
‘Qencallez Clan’ trae disco de aniversario (‘Qencallez Clan’ brings an anniversary album) – The ‘Qencallez Clan’ is celebrating their 20th Anniversary with a new CD el sábado, 13/4 a las 21:00 in the “Safari” discotech (av. 12 de Abril y Loja). The 15 songs are a fusion of different musical styles such as rap, boom rap, raggae and trap. <Not quite your favorite Barry Manilow or Barbra Streisand album.>

Chef Giovanni Cambizaca of Le Petit Jardin restaurant is featured in El Mercurio’s special feature section La nueva concinas of Cuenca.

Titulo –

¡Siempre encantadora! (Always enchanting) – This special issue has two additional sections featuring gastronomy and tourist destinations.

Section C, “La nueva cocina” features chef/owners of several restaurants including Giovanni Cambizaca at Le Petit Jardin; Andrés Ricardo Zambrano at La Guarida; and Wilmo Ordóñez and Paula Crespo at ITA. Also featured is the Distrito bar with mixologist Johann Rico and La Chichería, with barman Gustavo Romero.

Section D features tourist attractions, both urban and rural. These include historic houses converted to commercial uses such as the Casa del Parque and Casa del Coco and others that are now museums and cultural centers such as the Museo de Arte Moderno and the Casa de la Lira. Another attraction are the rooftops such as the roof of the Itza Hotel. Rural attractions include 2 waterfalls in the Chiquintad parish; viewpoints such as Turi, El Calvario, Ictocruz, Monjas and El Boquerón; the zoos in Nulti and Tarqui parishes; and architecture such as the churches in Paccha and Sinincay. Inside urban Cuenca but beyond the Centro Histórico are new commercial areas such as around the parque Santa Anita, the Plaza Europea, Plaza Solei, Casa Solano, and Río Plaza en Puertas del Sol. <You’ll need to do your own searches if any of these interests you. If I had to translate all the details, you probably wouldn’t get this post before Sunday.>

Consulta popular –

De El Mercurio del jueves, 11/4 (1 article):
Armas incautadas, al Estado (Weapons seized, to the State) – The 10th of the 11 questions on the consulta popular asks, “Do you agree that weapons that were instruments or material object in a crime, may be destined to the immediate use of the National Police or Armed Forces?” If the question passes, the Penal Code would be amended to include the seizure of assets (arms) when they were instruments, products or revenues in the commission of a crime.

For Stalin Aguilar, a sargeant in the Policía National in passive service and an attorney, the question can be looked at in 2 areas: operational and legal. He felt that it would be good that the arms go to the police and FF.AA. since organized crime rings have more sophisticated arms than the Government and this could be a savings to the State. From the legal point of view, the arms could have been used in a crime and that would affect evidence. He gave an example of being able to determine if a bullet was fired from one of these arms. He said the transfer to the police and military should be well regulated with a clear registry. Carlos Heredia, a lawyer and member of the National Anticorruption Commission said that the question needs to be considered in the context of the consulta and the yes vote is a truism. What is in the consulta can be done by other means such as through the National Assembly. He thought voters should vote “no” since this doesn’t help solve deeper problems in the country and only serves for political gains with an eye to the next elections.

Destino de bienes incautados (Destination of seized goods) – The 11th <and thank heaven the last> question asks “Do you agree with the State proceeding to be the holder (owner) of assets of illicit or unjustified origin, simplifying the procedure of the Organic Law of Extinction of Ownership?” In the attachment to the question it says that the Penal Code tipifies and sanctions the crimes of money laundering and failure to control money laundering. It also penalizes crime such as terrorism, financing terrorism, organized crime, and other crimes that generate economic resources that could be the object of money laundering. The Organic Law of Extinction of Ownership mentions that the law applies to assets of illegal or unjustified origin or illegal destinations located in Ecuador.

Roberto García, a U. Católica of Guayaquil professor, said the question should be answered with “yes.” He said it is common practice for a criminal who has amassed a fortune and is being processed in the legal system to put assets into the name of a 3d person or front man who can then sell the assets. This complicates cases that can take several years before resolution. If this question wins, it will allow a legal reform to speed up the seizure process.

According to Sebastián Cevallos, a lawyer and political activist, this question is important because it allows illegally gained money to return to the State. The seized assets and money should be earmarked for specific areas such as employment, health, education and security. He thinks that this issue could have been resolved with a reform from the National Assembly and not by means of a consulta popular. He also indicated that the Unidad Popular (UP), with which he is associated, has resolved to vote “no” on the questions related to international arbitration and hourly work.

Cuenca –

Cuenca vive sus fiestas (Cuenca celebrates its festivities) – The Celebrations for the 467th anniversary of the Founding of Cuenca started Wednesday with a parade by schools; and a mass, floral offerings, and a solemn session this morning. Activities this evening included concerts on the esplanade of the Alejandro Serrano Aguilar stadium a las 19:00 with H. con Rumba, Carlos Cortéz, Guanaco, la Máquina Camaleón y the Swing Original Monks. Tommorow’s presentation a las 19:00 in the Parque de la Libertad will include Ayllu Llakta, Diego Zamora, Centaurus, Gerardo Morán y Los Jayac. All free.
There are also ferias selling various things in the Calle del Artista, on av. 12 de Abril, in the Parque San Sebastián, calle Federico Malo and in El Otorongo. The Federación Provincial de Artesanos Profesionales de Azuay organized the Feria Cuenca Ciudad Mundial de la Artesanía at their location on calles General Torres y Mariscal La Mar. As part of its first bienal de artesanía, diseño y innovación (biennial of crafts, design and innovation) CIDAP opened its Feria de Excelencia today a las 10:00 with 28 craftspeople from different parts of Ecuador. The show and sale will run until el 14/4.

Ferias por fundación –
Complejo Deportivo Totoracocha (Los Andes y El Cóndor)
Federación Provincial de Artesanos (General Torres y Mariscal La Mar)
Calle del Artista (Sucre y Benigno Malo)
Feria Internacional del Libro (Benigno Malo y Gran Colombia)
Feria de Excelencia ARDIS (Paseo 3 de Nobiembre y Escalinatas)
Feria de El Otorongo (av. 3 de Noviembre)
Parque San Sebastián (Bolívar y Coronel Talbo)
Avenida 12 de Abril

Agenda de Eventos
12 de Abril, 10:00 – Inauguración de la Feria de Chaguarchimbana
16:00 – Projection of full length film at the Planetario Municipal
19:00 – Ruta de las Posadas, Casa Patrimonial de las Posadas
13 de Abril, 12:00 – Festival del Canelazo at Caballo Campana <is noon too early to start drinking?>
15:00 – Wooden car contest on Calle Larga y Benigno Malo
15:00 – Crazy car race on the Bajada de Todos Santos
14 de Abril, 10:00 – Festival de Asado (BBQ or Roast festival) at Estancia Buganey.

A partir de hoy, la gasolina Súper se vende a USD 4.10 (Starting today, Super gasoline will sell at USD 4.10) – The price of Súper Premium 95 went from $3.89 to $4.10 based on the price of petroleum and its derivatives in the international market. In febrero the price was $3.75.

Nacional –

De El Mercurio del jueves, 11/4 (2 articles):

José Conceico admite sobornos a excontralor (José Conceico admits bribes to former comptroller) – During the trial of ex-comptroller Carlos Pólit in Florida, an ex-director of Odebrecht, José Conceicao Santos, revealed that he had made cash payments in exchange for eliminating glosas that affected Odebrecht (A gloss is a sanction imposed by CGE for an act or omission that has caused a financial loss to the State. As such, the amount of the gloss will be equivalent to the damage calculated in the audit examination.). Pólit received $6 million to eliminate the glosses (damages?) for failures in the San Francisco central and a similar amount for the rest of the projects Odebrecht had in Ecuador, including a gas pipeline from the coast to Cuenca. Santos also mentioned payments made to Jorge Glas through his uncle Ricardo Rivera who are under investigation in Ecuador. <And this is the guy who claimed “political asylum in the Mexican embassy? The embassy should have called 911 and told the cops they had a fugitive from the law on their hands and please come take him away.>

Congreso de Costa Rica da luz verde a TLC con Ecuador (Costa Rican Congress gives green light to FTA with Ecuador) – El miércoles, the Congress of Costa Rica unanimously (40-0) in its first debate, to approve a Free Trade Agreement with Ecuador. The two Ministers of Foreign Trade hoped the agreement will be finalized quickly and that it would bring benefits to both countries. <And benefit Cuenca since I think some of the goods will be major appliances made in the city.>

And that’s all for today so hasta ? –

Jeanne