The amendments will be debated and voted before the holidays

Image: EXPRESO

According to Daily Expreso, Alianza Pais has not yet defined the date for the vote of the package of amendments to the constitution. Among the members of the bloc there was a virtual certainty: the debate in the plenary will begin this Thursday December 3rd. From there, two possible scenarios were proposed.

The National Assembly has a deadline between December 3 and January 3, 2016 to approve or deny the constitutional changes. The first, that the debate and the vote is the same day. That is, on Thursday. Legislators will be convened at 07:00, to start the reading of the 117 pages of the report submitted by the Occasional Commission on Amendments.

Then, during the debate, legislators can suggest changes to the texts of the 16 proposed amendments. Juan Carlos Cassinelli, President of the Commission and rapporteur, will be able to accept or not these suggestions to draf the final report of the vote. The time this process takes will determine how the voting date. It could be the same day. That is, two days before the festivities of Quito.

If there is a delay the date of the second stage would be set: December 23. That is, the day before Christmas Eve and Christmas. It would not be the first time. On December 22, 2014, the majority adopted the law on production incentives. Although in the PAIS bloc there are those who also bet on solving the whole process in December 23.

Translated into English by Pierina Abad

Source: http://expreso.ec/expreso/plantillas/nota.aspx?idart=8708384&idcat=38269&tipo=2