With an express procedure in the compound, although following several weeks of debate in the Constitutional Affairs commission, the Legislature suspended the pro-government legislator Eduardo Serrano without allowance.
The sanction will be until his situation is resolved in the provincial Justice, which has been investigating him for several months for a complaint of family violence filed by his ex-partner.
The suspension achieved the necessary 47 votes, out of a total of 70 legislators, so Serrano will not be a member of the Unicameral until the file being processed in the family violence jurisdiction is finalized.
Despite joining Hacemos por Córdoba, Serrano was listed as a candidate for mayor of Lozada, in the department of Santa María, where he has some fields, although he does not live in the town. Within the framework of his campaign, he adopted the aesthetics of Together for Change and appeared with Patricia Bullrich.
The question of privilege to Serrano had been promoted by the opposition blocs, although they later abstained from voting on the sanction. Thus, finally, the suspension was endorsed only by Peronism and its allies.
The opposition understands that Serrano’s misconduct might not be proven in the legislative process. The judicial investigation is under summary secrecy, for which the legislators might not access the file.
In this context, the opponents assure that the “real responsibility” of Serrano has not been confirmed. For this reason, the opposition did not withdraw the requests to sanction the legislator, but asked to abstain from the ruling party’s decision to move forward with the removal of the Peronist leader.
When in the session of April 5 the opponents requested the authorization of the Chamber to abstain, a scandal broke out and the definition of the suspension was postponed for a week, until this Wednesday, when Francisco Fortuna commanded the session that, without scandal, derived in the sanction of the denounced legislator.
Background
The scandal began in February, when it was learned that the head of the Cosquín First Nomination Civil, Commercial, Family and Conciliation Court, Carlos Machado, ordered a preventive measure to legislator Patricio Eduardo Serrano, who until yesterday held a seat in the Provincial Legislature, for a complaint for family violence made by his ex-partner.
The court order was made on February 2 and details that, “in order to stop the escalation of violence, protect life, physical or emotional integrity, freedom and personal safety of the complainant and the family group,” It was resolved “for a period of six months to establish the reciprocal prohibition (between the legislator and his ex-partner) of the presence in the home or residence, workplace, leisure studio or other places that they frequent.”
A month later, the situation was made public and the radical bloc attacked Serrano under the conviction that it was a case of gender violence.
Later it was learned that it was a case in the Family jurisdiction, with the mutual order of exclusion. On March 14, a secret summary was issued, and the proceedings were reserved. By this, the opposition understands that “the alleged misconduct might not be proven.” For the ruling party, suspicions were enough.
Serrano starred in different scandals and presented controversial projects, such as one for the Legislature to pay tribute to the creator of The Pink Panther.
