National Aldurian Broadcasting Corporation

[Alduria]

PUNTA SANTIAGO, ACD (NABC News) — Looming questions remain after Amy Malliste, Senior Counselor to the President and architect of last year's re-election victory, resigned from her leadership position after an independent government agency recommended her removal for using her office for profit and personal financial gain.

Reporting by Newsflash initially indicated that President Campos would stand by Ms. Malliste. During a meeting of the senior presidential staff, Malliste was asked to resign by Campos' Chief of Staff after considerable pressure from the Prime Minister and the Speaker came to bear on the President. The President was not present, as he is on his way back from a trip to the Micras Treaty Organization to speak about the Aldurian water crisis.

Today the Prime Minister went to Tweeter to speak about the resignation:

TWEETER
@AlfonzoVelezMP Malliste's resignation is an important first step in cleaning house, but the President's Office must fully cooperate in any criminal investigation into her alleged wrongdoings 

@AlfonzoVelezMP Anyone who would abuse their position of public trust to serve their own personal financial interests must be held to account for their actions.

It's unclear what the next step will be - but the Prime Minister's mention of a criminal investigation has certainly raised questions of greater wrongdoing in the Executive Mansion and whether a criminal investigation is underway.

Since the Newflash story, Malliste had been dogged by calls to resign since the Office of the Governmental Legal Counsel sent a report to President Campos stating that numerous internal codes of conduct were breached by Malliste by using her knowledge and position to gain an advantage in personal business and investments.

Natalia Cotilla, former Prime Minister and MP for Asuara, was one of the first members of Parliament to praise the resignation. "If Malliste used her position to gain an advantage in her business dealings, then we have to address that and this is a good first step. The people of Alduria deserve a good and clean government, and I know the President is committed to that," said Ms. Cotilla. "As a caucus, we need to take whatever additional steps are necessary to root out this type of behavior and to make sure there is zero tolerance for this behavior.”

Other members of Parliament had their own reactions. The Communist Party caucus spokesperson, Eva Lambros, expressed that she felt "dismay and disillusionment that so quickly our Republic is descending into another Euran kleptocracy at the expense of the working class," before highlighting that "Velez and the New Center would do the same."

This is the first major scandal for the Campos administration and it threatens to derail the presidency, already working without a legislative majority and a seemingly hostile co-habitation with a Prime Minister and Cabinet of opposing parties. The Press Office of the President reacted to the resignation with a release that made no mention of the report or any disciplinary action.

"The rosy departure press release from the Press Office is only making people ask more questions," said Professor Lawrence Wylie of the University of Punta Santiago Law School. "The Prime Minister's comments seem to hint a criminal investigation, which itself is a dangerous move and could compromise an investigation if it is underway."