The president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboatemporarily appointed Sariha MoyaNational Secretary of Planning, as Vice President of the Republic. This is a new chapter in Noboa’s confrontation with the vice president, Veronica Abadwho had been appointed by the Executive as the new ambassador to Türkiye at the end of December.
The decision was informed by the Minister of Government, José de la Gascain a press conference in Guayaquil, in which he explained that Vice President Abad had to appear at the Ecuadorian Embassy in Türkiye.
According to the Government, Abad Rojas was appointed temporary counselor with economic functions at the Embassy of Ecuador in Ankara, and must assume this position on December 27, 2024, a position for which she did not apply.
“Until today (Abad) has not shown up to fulfill the mandate of the President of the Republic in Ankara. This is a serious fact that hits the institutionality of the Executive function and also represents a disregard for an executive decree, but above all it leaves a void in the vice presidency that must be filled.”said De la Gasca.
In a letter dated December 27, 2024, Abad Rojas announced that he would take vacation from that same date until January 3, 2025, arguing that he needed to prepare for his transfer to the new position. This decision, according to Decree No. 492, does not have the authorization required by the National Assembly and constitutes an unjustified temporary absence, which constitutes a breach of its constitutional functions.
To “guarantee institutional stability and the continuity of the responsibilities of the Vice Presidency,” Noboa temporarily appointed Sariha Moya. Among the main functions assigned to Moya are the articulation and coordination of the public entities in charge of the National Public Finance System and the National Decentralized Participatory Planning System. Likewise, it will lead the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and will manage relations with international organizations linked to this objective.
The decree establishes that Moya will perform these functions until January 22, 2025 or until Abad Rojas appears at the embassy in Ankara. In addition, the continuity of security measures is ensured for both Abad and Moya and their respective families, under the coordination of the Presidential Military House.
The Ministry of Labor suspended Abad, who is also the country’s ambassador to Israel, from her position in November, accusing her of committing a serious disciplinary offense by not complying with an order to travel to Turkey for security reasons amid the Gaza conflict.
A court overturned the suspension in December, and that same day Noboa ordered Abad to go to Türkiye to act as a temporary counselor at the embassy.
Noboa and Abad have clashed repeatedly. The official has denied any irregularity.
Noboa is up for re-election in February and was seen as unlikely to take unpaid campaign leave if it meant Abad would briefly be in charge of Ecuador.
Gasca said Thursday that Noboa is not required to take leave during the campaign.
(With information from EFE and Reuters)
