Víctor Ramos Otero, Secretary of the Department of Health, defended the decision to contract new security companies, stating that there is nothing to investigate. The contract with Genesis Security Services Inc. expired on June 30, and the agency decided to keep only four of the eight areas, with the majority of employees who were laid off being rehired by the new companies.
Ramos Otero denied that the change was due to pressure from lobbying firm Politank, which was previously owned by Francisco Domenech, now Secretary of the Governor’s office. He also addressed an email from the Office of Management and Budget (OGP) warning about the lack of a competitive process, stating that it is a common procedure in government and that he had spoken with the OGP director about the importance of the contract.
Ramos Otero reiterated that there was no illegal activity in the contracting process, and that some contracts, such as those for Medicaid, require a competitive process, while others do not.