on Friday affirmed that —in a democracy— the Armed Forces are not a deliberative body, but absolutely neutral and scrupulously respectful of the Constitution.
In a televised address to the nation, the Head of State deemed as unacceptable the fact that a group of retired Armed Force officers intend to incite members of the
Army,
Air Force, and
Navy to violate the
rule of law.
This comes in reference to letters addressed to the general commanders and the head of the Joint Command of the Armed Forces requesting that they act against the Constitution and laws, within the framework of the electoral process.
According to the Peruvian leader, these letters suggest that the
Transition and Emergency Government "would have violated neutrality, since it states that —as I am going to quote— 'high government authorities, with an inconclusive scrutiny, have supposedly taken part in favor of one of the candidates even conditioning the Congress of the Republic for the non-election of the new members of the Constitutional Court; this is an act unacceptable by the citizenry and the Armed Forces of the Nation;' end of the quote," he said.
"As the
Constitutional President of the Republic, I reject this type of communication that is not only contrary to the democratic values and institutionalism, but also acts at odds with the Constitution and laws," he pointed out.
Likewise, the Commander-in-Chief guaranteed respect for institutionalism on the part of the Armed Forces.
As Supreme Head of the Armed Forces and the National Police of Peru, the President guaranteed neutrality and demanded that they be respected.
Finally, Mr. Sagasti urged citizens to remain calm at the difficult moments that the country is going through —days prior to the commemoration of the nation's Independence Bicentennial.