Abinader’s Second Term!
Santo Domingo, Aug 16 (EFE).-
The President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, assumed his second and final four-year term on Friday in the presence of more than a dozen heads of state and government.
“I swear before God and the people, by the fatherland and my honor, to uphold and enforce the Constitution and the laws of the Republic, to protect and defend its independence, to respect the rights and liberties of citizens, and to faithfully discharge my office duties,” Abinader said before receiving the presidential sash from Senate President Ricardo de los Santos.
Afterward, his vice-president Raquel Peña took the oath of office to continue her role for the 2024-2028 term.
“I humbly, proudly, and with commitment assume the sacred responsibility that the Dominican people have given me for the second time,” Abinader said in his speech.
“I am deeply honored to take the oath after an exemplary electoral process in which Dominicans freely expressed their will and once again demonstrated the democratic maturity we have achieved as a nation,” he added, referring to the Modern Revolutionary Party’s sweeping victory in the May 19 elections.
In his speech, Abinader stressed “the stability” of Dominican democracy, “the economic dynamism, and the great opportunities that exist here for business and investment.”
The Dominican head of state also took advantage of the opportunity to adress the crisis in Venezuela and demand the publication of all the records from the Jul. 28 presidential elections, in which the National Electoral Council (CNE) declared Nicolás Maduro the winner.
These results were rejected by the majority opposition and questioned by various countries.
The “serious crisis” in Venezuela following the publication of these results “leads us to demand the publication of all the electoral records, their verification by impartial institutions, and respect for the result as expressed by the will of the Venezuelan people,” Abinader said.
On Jul. 30, the Dominican Republic closed its embassy and consulate general in Venezuela in response to the measures announced by Maduro’s government to withdraw the representatives of seven countries, including the Dominican Republic, for questioning the official results of the elections.
In addition to withdrawing the representatives, the Venezuelan government temporarily suspended air connections with the Caribbean island.
The inauguration ceremony was held at the National Theater in Santo Domingo, instead of the National Congress as is customary, to accommodate the large number of guests attending the event.
More than a dozen heads of state and government attended Abinader’s inauguration, including the King of Spain, Felipe VI, and the presidents of Guatemala, Bernardo Arévalo; Panama, José Raúl Mulino; Paraguay, Santiago Peña; Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou; Honduras, Xiomara Castro; and Suriname, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, as well as the Vice President of El Salvador, Félix Ulloa. EFE
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