Thousands of protesters have flooded the streets of Puerto Rico to demand the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rosselló after the learning about damning messages shared between the Governor and his associates on the messaging app, Telegram.

What Happened?

The Puerto Rico Center for Investigative Journalism published 889 pages of conversations between the governor and his associates. According to reports, the exchanges include sexist and homophobic remarks against government officials and pop star, Ricky Martin. There were also callous remarks about the victims of Hurricane Maria, a catastrophe that killed about 3000 people in 2017.

Previous problems

The protests are an indicator of the people’s growing dissatisfaction with the government. They are unsatisfied with the country’s unstable economy, which is still struggling to recover from the debilitating effects of Hurricane Maria in 2017, and rampant corruption allegations which saw two members of his cabinet arrested, last week. A similar scandal in 2018 led to the resignation of some of Governor Ricardo Rosselló’s cabinet members.

Reactions

Locally, celebrities, government officials and activists have added their voice to the protest and pop stars, Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin (who himself was a target in the chat) have joined in the protest. Internationally, US Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeted in support. The President of America, Donald Trump, also commented on the issue in a series of tweets, saying Puerto Rico is under siege and much of the state’s leadership is corrupt.

The governor, however, does not appear to want to step down. Although he has apologized, he insists he will “keep working for the people of Puerto Rico.”