In his first act as president of Costa Rica, Luis Guillermo Solís on Thursday asked all his Cabinet members to sign a code of ethics requiring their efforts in public office to be marked by morality, transparency and open access to information for the public and the media.
The code was drafted by a legal team led by the new Public Works and Transport Minister Carlos Segnini, also a lawyer.
The president asked all Cabinet members to sign the code before being sworn in, following an inauguration ceremony at the National Stadium in western San José.
The document also includes a request for a proper and efficient use of public funds and budgets, a promise not to drink alcoholic beverages during official events, and a petition to refrain from accepting any donations.
Following a brief swearing in ceremony, Solís held his first Cabinet meeting at about 1:30 p.m. During that meeting, he signed of an executive decree prioritizing repairs to several important roads and highways. Work includes the replacement of a series of bridges in the provinces of San José, Alajuela, Guanacaste and Cartago.
The president also signed a decree giving the rank of minister to the presidents of the Costa Rican Tourism Board, the Mixed Institute for Social Aid and the National Women’s Institute.
He then moved to the facilities of the Antigua Aduana in downtown San José, where he had lunch with invited leaders and dignitaries of other countries. Before arriving at the Antigua Aduana, Solís made two quick stops: First he greeted hundreds of Ticos at the capital’s Central Park, and then he visited a nearby restaurant to briefly meet with relatives and close friends.
On Friday, Solís will move in to his new office at Casa Presidencial, in the eastern district of Zapote, at 7 a.m., and then hold meetings with Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa and OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza.
