Natalia Diaz avoids revealing whether president knew of spurious link between Storm Bonnie and damaged Liberian runway

During her speech, Díaz reiterated several times that she would exercise her right to abstain because, according to publications in “some media”, the Attorney General’s Office and the Office of the Deputy Prosecutor of Integrity are investigating the extension of her term. Nevertheless, she admitted that she had no first-hand knowledge of her inclusion in the dossier and said that she had not yet been summoned by the Prosecutor’s Office to make a statement.

Dias initially stated that he had signed, together with President Rodrigo Chavez, the extension of the emergency directive, through which the Liberian airport will be included in the works under the special procedure. In addition, he said that the above measures were taken based on the recommendation of the board of directors of the National Emergency Committee.

“The National Emergency Commission Board recommended that the executive branch sign the decree, specifying that the decree was duly facilitated by the respective advisory bodies and therefore, the extension of the declaration of emergency is feasible in response to the accumulated rains caused by Tropical Storms 11, 12 and Tropical Storm Bonnie in Liberia State,” the former minister said.

Visited: Controversial Liberian runway repair project stalled for two months

Dias said that in the same agreement, the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation (MOPT) noted that the rains had caused accelerated deterioration of the runway, according to a “serious impact report” issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) and the MOPT itself.

The former leader refused to answer questions from lawmakers, including whether President Rodrigo Chavez had requested more information on the alleged causal relationship between the runway deterioration and the storm, and whether she was aware of a technical report prepared by engineers of the DGAC aviation infrastructure department in which the said causal relationship was ruled out.

Díaz also would not say who proposed repairing the track through an emergency procedure and declined to say whether he was aware of the investment plan or how the strategy was communicated to the government by former Public Works Secretary Luis Amador during his presidency to repair the track.

In addition, he said he did not know whether President Chavez had finally filed a complaint with the prosecutor’s office regarding the so-called “tailor-made lawsuit” for hiring MECO to repair the runway, according to which Chavez justified the dismissal of Luis Amador.

Visited: 7 senior officials gathered at the presidential palace to include landing strips in the emergency decree

Díaz Quintana has repeatedly stated that what was being consulted was part of the investigation and that he would therefore refrain from testifying in order not to affect the course of the investigation. However, deputies have questioned this argument, as she herself admitted that she was unaware of her role in the public sector document.

Visited: Airport director confirms: Bonnie did not damage Liberia runway

As he explains, three months ago the media “talked about a document” that mentioned an alleged investigation against several leaders, including the President; the Minister of Public Works; the President of the CNE, Alejandro Picado; the former Director of Civil Aviation, Fernando Naranjo and her.

Deputies Antonio Ortega and Francisco Nicolas from the Frente Amplio and Frente Nacional de Liberación Nacional asked the president of the committee, Diego Vargas, to consult with the Public Ministry while Díaz is under investigation to verify whether her reasons should be taken into account or, if necessary, reconsidered. The call appeared.