Puerto Rico's development agency chief resigns after claiming government interference

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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The head of Puerto Rico ’s key economic development agency announced his resignation on Tuesday as he criticized the U.S. territory's administration of Jenniffer González, accusing it of interfering in the department's work.

The departure of Sebastián Negrón Reichard from the powerful Department of Economic Development and Commerce comes at a critical moment for Puerto Rico as it seeks to revive its economy and attract wealthy investors.

Negrón Reichard noted in his statement that more than 10 officials with leadership roles at the agency — including its chief of staff, general counsel and the finance chief — also stepped down following what he called interventions by the government. He said those include reversing two summary suspensions that Negrón Reichard had issued after an investigation found improper interventions in the agency’s procurement activities.

The government's actions "made it impossible to continue performing the duties of the position with the integrity and autonomy that the role requires and that every secretary owes to the public,” Negrón Reichard said.

He added that those actions also left “unprotected the staff who reported alleged irregularities in internal processes.” Negrón Reichard said he would not comment further, pending legal actions.

Gov. González expressed disappointment after reporters questioned her about the resignation and brushed off questions about alleged interference.

“I’m disappointed because I think he was a great agency secretary,” she said. “We accomplished a lot and worked hard.”

Meanwhile, Puerto Rico Senate President Thomás Rivera Schatz, who has recently been at odds with González, though they are from the same pro-statehood party, called the resignation “extremely regrettable.”

“I hope that those responsible for evaluating and understanding the scope of these circumstances will do so and take the corrective actions they need to take, which I’ve been warning them about for quite some time," Rivera Schatz said.

"If they don’t, well, I’ll be talking to these people, and if they bring evidence to me that shows something is wrong, I’ll go after them,” he added.