Quito, Ecuador, Jan 22, 2007 / 10:22 am
Archbishop Antonio Arregui Yarza of Guayaquil has called on Rafael Correa, the new President of Ecuador, to act with restraint in the first weeks of his administration and that, in response to recent events, the best path towards a solution to the country’s problems is dialogue and not confrontation.
Speaking on Radio Catolica Nacional, the archbishop also addressed the issue of the appointment of security officials by Congress and the administration. He said the process should take place with the utmost transparency and should be “faithful to the procedures outlined in the Constitution.”
“Nobody can overlook that, neither the Congress nor the president nor any other authority, in order to guarantee the rule of law and to prevent the whims of some from being imposed on others,” he said.
Ecuador’s president, Rafael Correo, professes to be a “practicing Catholic,” and as a young man he cooperated in the Church’s social work and even considered a vocation to the priesthood. However, his formation was influenced by the Marxist strand of liberation theology, which was very popular in Ecuador during the 1980’s.