Bolivia Gives Ex-President Morales 10 Days To Testify In Court

LA PAZ (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th September, 2020) Bolivia's prosecutor general's office has given 10 days to former President Evo Morales to testify in court, the country's Attorney General Juan Lanchipa said.

"The judge ordered that Morales appeared in person within 10 days and appeared before the judiciary," Lanchipa told reporters.

On Tuesday, Bolivia's Presidency Minister Yerko Nunez called for a faster investigation into an electoral fraud case.

In July, the anti-corruption commission of the prosecutor's office accused Morales, who is now residing in Argentina, of terrorism-related crimes and asked for his arrest, as he was allegedly coordinating food blockade and the siege of major cities during the November 2019 conflict with the leader of Bolivian cocaleros, Faustino Yukra, over the phone.

According to prosecutors, Morales kept in touch with Yukra during his stay in Mexico.

Morales, 60, is already under investigation on several other cases, including corruption. The ex-president himself has denied the allegations, claiming they are politically-motivated.

Morales was pressured by the military to flee Venezuela on the back of violent nationwide protests last fall. They were ignited by his controversial victory in an election that would launch his fourth consecutive presidential term.

In October, the Bolivian opposition refused to accept the victory of then-incumbent Evo Morales in the first round of the presidential election, citing alleged irregularities in the vote-counting process. Under the pressure of protests and the military, Morales stepped down and fled the country. Bolivia's highest-ranking officials followed suit. The opposition vice-speaker of the upper house, Jeanine Anez, took over as interim president.