PDP Demands Rosselló Remove Former Salinas Mayor from Ballot

SALINAS – Popular Democratic Party (PDP) Sens. Juan Pablo Hernández and Ángel Rodríguez Otero called upon New Progressive Party (NPP) gubernatorial candidate Ricardo Rosselló to demand that former Salinas mayor Carlos Rodríguez Mateo resign his candidacy for Senate.

Carlos Rodríguez Mateo (Source: Facebook)

Rodríguez Mateo was mentioned again this week by the Comptroller Office, which noted that he illegally appropriated $30,394 for 90 days of accrued sick leave, the PDP politicians said.

They indicated that “Rodríguez Mateo incurred in irregularities related to the lease with the option to purchase a municipal property and issuing a mortgage note without fulfilling law requirements, which impeded getting additional money to the municipality.”

The claim states that he also designated personnel with irregular and transitory classification during the electoral ban, while lacking a ruling for administering irregular staff, which cost Salinas $158,193.

“We demand Rosselló to request Rodríguez Mateo’s resignation from the candidacy immediately. This person has demonstrated a corruption pattern and clear contempt for Salinas’ resources. This latest report signed by Comptroller Yesmín Valdivieso Galib indicates that Rodríguez Mateo’s acts cost the municipality of Salinas more than half a million dollars,” said Hernández, who is running for the Senate representing the Guayama District.

Meanwhile, Rodríguez Otero said that “we are talking about the same person who bankrupted Salinas, hired 163 employees in a two-month period during the electoral ban, and kept public funds. Most worrisome of all is that, in the light of remarks from the Comptroller’s Office, he now pretends to legislate the Guayama district, and we can’t allow it.”

For the past few days, both PDP candidates have questioned Rosselló’s leadership to clean the ballot from candidates like Rodríguez Mateo.

“The NPP ballot has several candidates with dubious reputation. Not only does it have Rodríguez Mateo, but also Enrique Questell and Rivera Schatz, among other candidates who, apart from being recycled, have been identified or accused, and the people know who they are and what they have done, and Rosselló knows it too,” they asserted.

Among the Comptroller’s Office’s recommendations is repaying the $30,394 that Rodríguez Mateo illegally appropriated. In addition, the Justice Department has requested the Special Independent Prosecutors Office (FEI by its Spanish initials) to designate an attorney for the investigation.

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