THAT Article 119 of the Political Constitution of the Republic states: "The institutions of the State, its organizations and dependencies and the public officials will not be able to exercise other powers than those established in both the Constitution and the law, and will have the duty to coordinate its actions for the attainment of common well. Those institutions determined by the Constitution and the law, enjoy autonomy for its organization and operation."

THAT the resolution cited in previous resolution establishes the framework within which it is formulated, in a coherent manner, Article 219, fifth paragraph, of the same system of laws; norm that authorizes the Public Ministry with the functions of coordinating and directing "the struggle against corruption, with the collaboration of all the entities that, within their competition, may have equal duty."

THAT Article 220 of the Political Constitution of the Republic states autonomy and economic, political and administrative independence of the Civic Counter Corruption Commission. These powers are ratified by Article 1 of its Law.

THAT Public Ministry has as essential authority "the defense and the sponsorship of the society in the cases indicated by the Constitution and the laws," in accordance to Article 2 of the Organizational Law of the Public Ministry, in conformity with Article 219, first paragraph, of the Political Code.

THAT the Civic Counter Corruption Commission, according to Article 220, first clause, of the Political Constitution of the Republic, in conformity with Articles 2 and 7 of the Organization Law, has the competition of promoting the elimination of corruption, in representation of the civil society, through prevention activities and investigation of acts related to the phenomenon of corruption.

THAT according to Article 16 of the Penal Procedure Code the criminalization in penal matters must be specifically indicated in the Law, without considering that Article 212, first paragraph, of the System of Laws, institute a requirement of criminalization when stating for the General Controllership of the State the authority of "exclusive imperium to determine administrative and civil liabilities as well as criminal evidence."

THAT Article 120 of the Political Constitution of the Republic determines: "There will not be any public official, authority, or public servant exempted from liabilities in the performance of public function, or by omissions. The performance of dignities and public functions constitutes a service to the collectivity, which will demand capacity, honesty and efficiency".

THAT Article 7, paragraph a), of the Civic Counter Corruption Commission Law confers to such State Institution the authority "to design a national prevention plan which will be informed to the highest authorities of the State."

With strict subordination to the Ecuadorian Legal Code,

Decides:

Article 1. Establish as an institutional doctrine the following criteria:

a. The authority conferred to the Public Ministry to coordinate and address the struggle against corruption must be understood as associated and restricted to the primary function of such State Institution, which is to promote and to participate, in defense and sponsorship of the society, in the penal processes determined by the Legal set of laws of the Republic, being therefore, detached from the nature and competition of the Public Ministry the coordination and address of actions aimed at preventing corruption.

The Civil Counter Corruption Commission will perform both preventing and investigating acts of corruption. This is explained because of its legal nature, by which even though it is considered a State institution, it exercises its competition in representation of the civil society; therefore its performance has projections within the whole social body.

b. The aforementioned coordination and address faculty granted to the Public Ministry finds its limit in the autonomy and independence that the national system of laws confers to other State institutions, namely the Civic Counter Corruption Commission.

In fact, such faculty related to the Public Ministry does not suppose a heteronomous plan in which the other State Organizations are found underlying to the institutional will of the first. On the contrary, it is considered an autonomous plan by which all State Organizations coordinate its actions to reach the common well, as corresponding to its duty legally established by the Constitution; and where with the purpose of organization and efficiency of institutional relationship, the Public Ministry contributes with coordination and address.

In short, the strict respect to the autonomy and independence of other State institutions, constitutes an indispensable condition for the legitimate exercise of the mentioned constitutional faculty of the Public Ministry.

c. The exclusive imperium that the Constitution confers to the General State Controllership for the determination of administrative and civil liabilities, and for the establishment of criminal evidence, it does not suppose a pre-judicial requirement for the exercise of penal action by offenses related to public corruption.

On the contrary, when the referred breaches are focused, the criminal process can start, without pre-judicial difficulty, taken into account anyone of the antecedents and forms of criminalization foreseen in Article 15 of the Penal Procedure Code namely the fiscal excitative.

Article 2. Inform State control organizations the content of the present Resolution.
Given in the Metropolitan District of Quito, in the board room of the Civic Counter Corruption Commission joint session, the fifteenth day of March of year two thousand.