The Comptroller’s resolution indicates that when an authority transforms their personal social network accounts into a channel of communication for the institution, they must be subject to the same rules as institutional accounts, for which user blocking is prohibited. In other words, all users blocked in the mayor’s personal Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Tiktok accounts must be unblocked as soon as possible..
The Comptroller General of the Republic instructed the mayor of Antofagasta, Jonathan Velásquez, to put an end to the blocking of users that he maintains on his personal social networks, which illegally affect citizens and the media.
The supervisory body accepted the complaint filed by the company that owns El Diario de Antofagasta once morest the municipality for blocking users and censoring comments from citizens.
The resolution ordered the Municipality of Antofagasta to “adopt the necessary actions to ensure free access of people to their institutional accounts and the mayor’s personal accounts intended for institutional matters, in the terms set forth above, and in the event of unilaterally blocked users for that entity to rectify said situation as soon as possible”.
In the document, the Comptroller cited the different sources of law that support its pronouncement, including opinion 18,671 of 2019, which indicates that the accounts that the ministries, undersecretaries, public services or municipalities maintain on social networks cannot carry out the blocking of users.
And the text adds: “If the authority decides to use your personal account to deliver information before the institutional account or when the information obtained in the exercise of the position is provided through the private account, it must submit to the same rules of openness, non-discrimination, transparency and publicity than those that govern the account of the public body, not being able to block users”.
“The foregoing since in those cases, by the authority’s own will, it transforms your personal account into a communication channel of the respective institution,” indicates the Comptroller’s resolution.
Although the municipality indicated in its report that there are no blocked accounts in the institutional accounts, “the mayor’s accounts that are in the cases indicated in the previously cited jurisprudence must be subject to the same rules of openness, non-discrimination, transparency and publicity. that the account of the public body, finding, consequently, prevented the blocking of users”, for which “in case there are users unilaterally blocked by that entity, correct said situation as soon as possible”, ordered the Comptroller’s Office.
Mayor of Antofagasta risks summaries, fines and more if he does not comply with the instruction of the Comptroller
In case of falling in contempt of this resolution, the municipality is exposed to summaries, fines or other legal consequences. that might further aggravate the delicate situation that the municipal administration is experiencing following the accusations of misuse of public funds, workplace harassment, use of false accounts on social networks to attack their opponents, use of direct deals for street cleaning, maintenance of green areas and educational crisis in the commune, among others.
