Ponce District Senator Ramoncito Ruiz Nieves spoke about the situation of the Ministry of Education, in particular the appointment of Jesús González Cruz as Acting Education Minister, who failed to make it to the melting pot of the Senate yesterday, Tuesday. .
“Simply, Mr. González’s letter of introduction is regrettable. The Senate concluded that González Cruz does not meet the requirements for the position. My position is that Governor Pedro Pierluisi should not insist on leaving him in office while appointing his own secretary. He doesn’t have the qualifications, ”added the senator, who has been working in depth on the case of schools in the southern area, especially the structures hit by the earthquakes.
“We’re talking about Gonzalez who holds a position in the Corrections Department. During Carlos Molina’s tenure, with regrettable results, the whole country knows this. After that he was deputy mayor of Arecibo, with even worse results. We cannot have another Julia Keleher in the position. In turn, Ruiz Nieves said yesterday that the Department of Education has a multi-million dollar budget in federal funds and a great deal of responsibility for the 200,000 students. “That great responsibility also rests with teachers and non-teaching staff. My recommendation to Governor Pierluisi is that you should make sure you nominate someone whose cover letter is impeccable. Whoever you name must live up to the highest values of integrity, honesty and dedication, ”he added.
When it was announced yesterday that the senate had loudly rejected the nomination, Governor González asked to retain command of the department “on a temporary basis until he names the secretary ownership and the senate gives him permission,” said Pierluisi, who did. did. do not indicate how long it would take to make the appointment.
“This could end up in court. We may have extra time without a secretary from the Ministry of Education for an indefinite period of time. The worst thing would be to appoint and confirm a person who does not have the qualifications. And with this serious responsibility, in addition to being a senator for all the congregations in the Ponce district, I must also be a senator for the children of the rest of Puerto Rico, ”concluded Ruiz Nieves.