Conflict of Interest: Santiago Metro Director Juan Carlos Muñoz Resigns

SANTIAGO – Juan Carlos Muñoz has submitted his resignation as a director of Chilean capital Santiago’s state-owned subway operator Metro de Santiago after ‘developing conflicts of interest within the Ministry of Transport’.

In a communication addressed to Metro president Rodrigo Azócar, Munoz tendered his resignation and indicated that he had no conflicts of interest. He also assured his resignation will avoid “damage to the institutions that have trusted in his work”.

“I do not see it that way, because I have put all my activities in the knowledge of the authorities of Metro and in this role I have only tried that my work contributes to improve the System of public transport of Santiago.”

Earlier this week, in an interview, Senator Andrés Allamand had accused Juan Carlos Muñoz of having conflicts of interest.

The parliamentarian, who had questioned the administration of the resigned minister Andrés Gómez-Lobo, had pointed out that an “example” of conflicts of interest in the portfolio was the situation of the academic of the Universidad Católica Juan Carlos Muñoz.

“The situation of the expert Juan Carlos Muñoz,” said Allamand, “is a good example: an adviser to the transport minister, director of the Metro, and through a company he owns called SHIFT, he advises a system operator (Metbus) and has to do with a center financed by the Volvo company that obviously promotes the purchase of buses. I hope it goes with Gómez-Lobo.”

After the controversy, Muñoz decided to resign the board of Metro, which was recorded in the Superintendency of Securities and Insurance.