Congress President Senator Basilio "Bachi" Núñez, of the Colorado Party, defended his party's proposal to nominate two members to the positions of Comptroller General and Deputy Comptroller General of the Republic. He was responding to independent senator Eduardo Nakayama, who had suggested that the opposition boycott the selection process if the National Republican Association (ANR) insisted on nominating both candidates.
On his X account, Núñez justified the proposal by citing former comptrollers linked to the opposition who faced criminal proceedings and were convicted. He named Daniel Fretes Ventre, Óscar Rubén Velázquez Gadea and José Enrique García. According to the account Núñez cited, Fretes Ventre was convicted in 2006 of money laundering and criminal association, but was later acquitted by the Supreme Court; Velázquez Gadea was convicted of breach of trust; and García was convicted of producing inauthentic documents and instigating a subordinate. "Today we need to break this cycle: a transparent, merit-based selection process grounded in technical experience, not political affiliation or deals," Núñez argued.
The report criticized Núñez’s defense, noting that he voted for former senator Hernán David Rivas to lead the Jury for the Impeachment of Magistrates (JEM). It also criticized the Comptroller’s handling of President Santiago Peña’s financial disclosure, saying it did not clarify the origin of his wealth.
The report called the claim contradictory that the governing party’s parliamentary majority allowed it to proceed with appointments without the opposition, noting that government figures also cited their majorities in both chambers to justify proceeding.