For the plenary session of Congress scheduled for today, the deputies will know through articles and final drafting the project that reforms the Law of Creation of the Recreation Institute of the Workers of the Private Company of Guatemala.
The initiative identified with the number 6314, contemplates, as explained by the president of the entity, Ricardo Castillo Sinibaldi, three fundamental changes. Among these, order and update their purchasing processes, however, he stressed that it is not to change any of the purposes of the current legislation.
The exception article
He exemplified that, if a mechanical game breaks down, it will have to be repaired immediately, but this cannot be acquired quickly because the process mandated by the State Purchasing and Contracting Law must be followed, until it reaches the time of the bidding. or opening of escrows according to the quote. He said that in the meantime, the game will be stopped for three months, “not because of the administration, but because of this Law and so on, it happens with all inputs.
Castillo Sinibaldi explained that by following the steps of the “Purchasing Law” the construction of the Xejuyup park, in Retalhuleu, was delayed 14 months. He said that this measure led to an increase of 20 percent.
In this context, one of the keys to the reforms to the Law is that the institution takes advantage of an exception article, which already exists in the Purchasing Law, which also includes the National Institute of Electrification (Inde). , Banco de Guatemala, Public Health and other entities, this to be more agile in their purchases, reiterated the president of Irtra.
The institution is one of those that does not receive a contribution from the central government, they enjoy autonomy and their budget generated is mainly from the contribution of businessmen and the income from their operation.
“The purchasing procedures, which are quotation or bidding, have such a long process that the process to purchase an item takes up to five months”
Meanwhile, he said that they depend on this reform to begin building a convention center in Retalhuleu that might host events for up to 15 thousand people; This project combined with an international airport to receive direct flights and thus generate tourism and contribute development to that jurisdiction. In addition to other investments.
“We have discussed it with the deputies, who fortunately have understood it and have understood that if the institution’s ability to invest is not improved, development will continue to be slow.”
Organization of the Board of Directors
The interviewee reported that at the time Irtra was formed there were two commercial entities, the Guatemalan Chamber of Commerce (CCG) and the General Association of Merchants (Agecogua), the latter which no longer exists, as does the General Association of Farmers (AGA) that represented the agricultural sector. So there are currently empty seats on the Board.
Given this, they propose to reorder:
- The chair that corresponds to Agecogua would go to the Chamber of Commerce, to add 2
- And of the 2 seats of the AGA, one would be eliminated and the remaining would go to the Chamber of Finance
- So, from 9 current directors they would have 8: Chamber of Industry with 2 representatives, 2 more from organized workers and 1 appointed by the President of the Republic – with the latter he clarified that the only reason is to have a link to discuss the issues without any administrative interference-
Freedom to make your budget
The Ministry of Finance must annually give them authorization to make their budget and according to Castillo Sinibaldi “they no longer want that”, but for it to be established in the Law, because they make the budget directly and it does not affect the Government in any way. .
The rest of the changes are in form, for example: the representative of the institution who was the president and is now the legal representative, that the work report is not presented in December but in January, among others.
The process
Irtra is an institution that was created in 1962, as an autonomous institution and whose purpose is the creation, promotion and development of recreation centers for workers of companies and private employers. The initiative was heard by the plenary session in November 2023 and ruled favorably by the Congressional Finance Commission days later.
The project contemplates changes to 14 articles of the Law Creating the Institute, as well as the addition of two more. It states that “Irtra may directly contract works, goods, supplies and services that it acquires with its own resources, as well as those goods that it sells, in national and international markets.”
“In general, the Law is good, its purposes are defined, we know what we are doing, but there are things to remove and add, but the three points explained are the fundamental ones, the rest is formal”
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