Senators are confident they will approve the Penal Code today, Monday, before the end of the legislature.

Santo Domingo. – Senators from different blocs assured this Monday that they are ready to approve today in the Senate of the Republic the reform project to the Penal Code, as well as other pending legislative initiatives, with the aim of fulfilling the commitment made to finalize these pieces before the closing of the current legislature. The senator for the province of La Vega, Ramón Rogelio Genao, highlighted that, although the Senate did not meet during the weekend, the legislators continued working on the revision of last-minute suggestions, seeking to build consensus that allows the final approval of the project.

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“We don’t hold sessions on the weekend, but we do work. We work Saturday and Sunday here, reviewing suggestions that come in at the last minute. We are on the eve of the closing of a legislature and we must also consult the opinion of the Chamber of Deputies so that what is approved here is endorsed there without variations”, indicated the legislator.

The senator pointed out that in addition to the Penal Code, details of the reform project to the Labor Code and the new Law of Purchases and Contracting are also being finalized, as well as other relevant initiatives that Congress seeks to approve before Wednesday, July 24, when the legislative period concludes. For his part, Senator Moisés Ayala, representative of the province of Barahona, was optimistic about the definitive approval of the Penal Code this same Monday. “Yes, I think that today we are going to finish knowing the whole project and that it will be approved by the Senate of the Republic and sent to be known tomorrow, Tuesday, in the Chamber of Deputies,” he affirmed. Asked about a possible presidential observation, Ayala recalled that in the past a version of the Penal Code was returned by the Executive Branch, but expressed confidence that this time it will be enacted. “I was part of that back then, but we now hope that the president can enact this piece that all Dominicans need so much,” he expressed. The reform of the Penal Code has been under discussion for more than two decades, and its eventual approval would represent one of the main legislative achievements of the year. With only days remaining until the end of the legislature, the senators stated that they will do everything possible to ensure that these laws are approved on time.