SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — For the first time in Costa Rica’s history, a sitting president defended himself Friday before three lawmakers considering a petition to lift his immunity so he can be prosecuted on corruption charges.
President Rodrigo Chaves said the effort was an attempt at political revenge by the country’s attorney general and magistrates of the Supreme Court, who requested he be stripped of his immunity.
They allege that Chaves pressured a producer who had been awarded a contract by the Central American Bank for Economic Integration to give a portion of that money to a former campaign adviser.
Chaves denied the allegations. He pointed to other long-running corruption investigations in Costa Rica that continue without resolution, as well as drug traffickers who pass through the courts without punishment.
Leaving the Legislative Assembly, Chaves addressed a group of supporters, saying opposition lawmakers “staged a ridiculous case to carry out a judicial coup d’etat, to convince (people) I was a scoundrel.”
The panel of three lawmakers now have to put together a report to present to the full Congress, which will vote at a still unknown date on whether Chaves should lose his immunity or not.
Chaves, a conservative economist, ran an outsider’s campaign in 2022 despite having briefly served as finance minister in the administration of outgoing President Carlos Alvarado.
National elections are scheduled for Feb. 1, but Costa Rica does not allow presidential reelection.
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