Demand investigation into millionaire state asset loss due to procedural omission
Raúl Martínez, Secretary of Legal Affairs for the Fuerza del Pueblo (FP), has formally requested that the General Directorate of Ethics and Government Integrity (DIGEIG) initiate an exhaustive investigation into a serious procedural omission at the General Directorate of National Assets. This negligence has left the Dominican State exposed to a payment of RD$2,693.9 million for land located on José Contreras Avenue, in the National District.
The situation, which has generated great concern, originated after the expiration of the cassation appeal that sought to challenge a conviction against the State. Due to the procedural inactivity of the lawyers responsible for representing National Assets, the Supreme Court of Justice was unable to evaluate the State’s arguments, which resulted in a final judgment that mandates the payment of a multi-million figure for 117,937.80 square meters of land.
A large-scale economic loss
The political leader emphasized that this case cannot be minimized as a simple formal error, given the magnitude of the public funds involved. According to the records, while the National Assets department valued the outstanding balance at approximately RD$120.2 million, the final amount set by the Superior Administrative Court rose to more than RD$2.693 billion, a difference that the State lost the opportunity to debate judicially.
We are talking about almost RD$2.7 billion that the Dominican people will have to pay. When an action or omission by public servants has consequences of this magnitude for the State’s assets, there is an obligation to investigate, identify responsibilities, and explain to the country what happened.
Raúl Martínez, Secretary of Legal Affairs of the Fuerza del Pueblo.
Key points for the research
- Determination of responsible parties: Identify the officials, lawyers, and administrative managers who were in charge of the file during the three years of inactivity.
- Supervision failures: Establish why internal control mechanisms were not activated to prevent the expiration of the appeal.
- Transparency: Clarify whether the higher authorities of National Assets were notified in time about the procedural risk of the case.
Constitutional Court ruling TC/0771/26 confirmed the extinction of the appeal by validating that, over a prolonged period, the necessary actions to advance the process were not taken, despite the existence of legal tools to avoid such expiration.
Martínez concluded by urging the authorities to demonstrate government transparency through concrete actions in the face of such economic damages, ensuring that citizens receive clear answers on how the State’s interests were managed in a litigation of such magnitude.
