A group of leaders and militants of the Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS), affiliated with the president of Bolivia, Luis Arce, announced today their intention to take over the national headquarters of the party. This comes in response to the decision of the Constitutional Court to disauthorize Evo Morales as leader of the MAS and recognize Grover García as the president of the formation.
The ruling of the Constitutional Court validates the MAS congress held in El Alto, where García was elected as Arce's successor, annulled the parallel congress organized by Morales in Lauca Eñe. Arce's supporters gathered in Plaza Murillo in La Paz to celebrate the ruling, interpreting it as a return of the MAS to social organizations.
Renán Cabezas accused Arce's government of attempting to "steal the MAS initials" and representing a "corrupt leadership" that has distanced itself from the original principles of the movement. Evo Morales, for his part, labeled the ruling as "unconstitutional, illegal, and illegitimate," denouncing Arce's government's attempt to take over the MAS.
The internal division in the MAS is evident through these reactions. Morales struggles to maintain his political influence in the party, while Arce seeks to strengthen his control, distancing himself from Morales's figure. The recent congress in El Alto, backed by Arce, appointed Grover García as the party leader, sidelining Evo Morales.
The group aligned with Arce also requested that Morales return a sum of 10 million bolivianos to the party. According to leaders of the movement, the former president had extracted these funds from the MAS to finance activities in his favor. Morales's followers rejected the ruling and questioned its legitimacy, accusing the Constitutional Court of acting against the indigenous movement and the MAS's foundations. Polarization within the MAS and tensions over party control between the factions of Arce and Morales continue to rise.
