Jorge Glas
Jorge David Glas Espinel (born 13 September 1969) is an Ecuadorean politician and electrical engineer. He has been Vice President of Ecuador from 24 May 2013 until his resignation on 13 December 2017.
Jorge Glas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Vice President of Ecuador[a] | |
| In office 24 May 2013 – 3 January 2018 | |
| President | Rafael Correa Lenín Moreno |
| Preceded by | Lenín Moreno |
| Succeeded by | María Vicuña |
| Coordinating Minister of Strategic Sectors | |
| In office 5 April 2010 – 10 November 2012 | |
| President | Rafael Correa |
| Preceded by | Galo Borja |
| Succeeded by | Rafael Poveda |
| Minister of Telecommunications and Information Society | |
| In office 14 August 2009 – 3 April 2010 | |
| President | Rafael Correa |
| Preceded by | Position created |
| Succeeded by | Jaime Guerrero |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jorge David Glas Espinel 13 September 1969 Guayaquil, Ecuador |
| Nationality | Ecuadorian |
| Political party | PAIS Alliance |
| Spouse(s) | Cinthia Díaz Aveiga |
| Parents | Jorge Glas Viejó Norma Espinel Aráuz |
| Alma mater | ESPOL |
Personal life
changeJorge Glas was born 13 September 1969 in Guayaquil. He has known and been friends with president Rafael Correa since their time as boy scouts.[1]
Education
changeHe holds a degree in electrical engineering from the ESPOL which he obtained on 22 September 2008.[2] On 3 January 2013 Jorge Glas was reported to the police for plagiarism of his thesis. He was reported by Galo Lara, a member of the rival Patriotic Society Party.[2] The thesis was reviewed by Genove Gneco, a professor from the Dominican Republic, who investigated the thesis and found 35% of it to be suspected plagiarism.[3] An investigation by a commission set up by ESPOL found Glas not guilty of plagiarism. Glas however recognized that he should have cited his sources better.[4]
Political career
changeSince 2007 Glas has held several political appointments in the government of Rafael Correa. He was General Manager of the now shut down Solidarity Fund between 2007 and 2009. He was also the President of the National Telecomunications Council.
Afterwards Glas was Minister of Telecommunications. He directed the joining together of Andinatel S.A. and Pacifitel S.A. into a single company, the National Corporation of Telecommunications, a corporation that he became the first chairperson of.[5]
As Coordinating Minister of Strategic Sectors he was responsible for the building of several hydroelectric power plants the he had to borrowed money from Chinese banks to build.[1]
Vice Presidency
changeGlas started his time as Vice President on 24 May 2013.
On 4 August 2017, Glas was suspended of his duties as Vice President due to corruption.[6][7][8][9] He resigned from the office on 13 December 2017. He was replaced by Urban Minister María Vicuña.
Arrest
changeIn December 2023 Glas entered the Mexican embassy in Quito and asked for political asylum, arguing he was being politically persecuted.[10]
On 5 April 2024, he was arrested by Ecuadorian police after they raided the Mexican embassy in Quito.[11] After this incident, Mexico ended diplomatic relations with Ecuador.[12] On 6 April 2024, Nicaragua broke ties with Ecuador in solidarity with Mexico.[13] On 9 April, prison authorities said that Glas had been hospitalized in the Guayaquil naval hospital after not eating for 24 hours, adding that his condition was stable.[14]
References
change- ↑ 1.0 1.1 (in Spanish) Araujo, Alberto (2013-01-23). "El hombre de los contratos millonarios". El Comercio. Archived from the original on 2013-01-25. Retrieved 2013-05-22.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 (in Spanish) "Asambleísta Lara dice que Jorge Glas ejercía su cargo cuando era bachiller". El Universo. 2013-01-03. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
- ↑ (in Spanish) "Informe señala inconsistencias en tesis de Jorge Glas". El Universo. 2013-01-09. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
- ↑ (in Spanish) "Jorge Glas dice que Espol ratifica validez de su tesis de grado". El Universo. 2013-05-17. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
- ↑ (in Spanish) Vinueza, Robertson (2012-11-10). "Jorge Glas es el candidato a la Vicepresidencia del Ecuador por la Alianza Pais". Agencia Pública de Noticias del Ecuador y Suramérica. Retrieved 2013-05-22.
- ↑ "Lenín Moreno retira de sus funciones al vicepresidente de Ecuador Jorge Glas" (in Spanish). CNN Espanol. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ↑ "Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno Strips Vice President Jorge Glas Of All Functions". NDTV. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
- ↑ "Presidente Lenín Moreno retira de todas sus funciones a Jorge Glas" (in Spanish). El Universo. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ↑ "Ecuador leader strips vice president of powers due to corruption case". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 4 August 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ↑ "Former Ecuador VP asks for asylum in Mexico -lawyer". Reuters. 22 December 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
- ↑ "Mexico's president says country will break diplomatic ties with Ecuador, after police raid embassy". Associated Press. 5 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
- ↑ "'Outrage against international law': Mexico breaks diplomatic ties with Ecuador over embassy raid". CNN. 5 April 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
- ↑ "Nicaragua kutter forbindelsen med Ecuador etter omstridt ambassadeaksjon". 6 April 2024.
- ↑ "Ecuador ex-VP Jorge Glas hospitalised after capture from Mexico embassy". Al Jazeera. 9 April 2024. Archived from the original on 9 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
- ↑ Suspended from 3 August 2017 until his removal from office. Powers and duties were transferred to María Vicuña.