Ecuador's Correa to expel World Bank representative

QUITO, April 15, 2007, France 24 - Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa said Sunday he would expel the World Bank's representative in Quito, accusing him of withdrawing funds in protest over the government's oil sector reforms.

The leftist president said the World Bank official had tried to blackmail him when he was economy minister in 2005 with a loan of 100 million dollars.

Correa was sworn into office on January 15 to a five-year presidential term.

"We will expel the World Bank representative from the country because we are not going to take a bribe from anyone," Correa said, without naming the official.

The bank's current representative in Ecuador is Eduardo Somensato.

Correa's announcement came shortly after Ecuadoran voters solidly approved his plan to form an assembly to rewrite the country's constitution to promote a socialist agenda.

Correa said his government "is investigating" the World Bank's cancellation of part of a 100-million-dollar loan that Ecuador was supposed to have received when he was the finance minister in the government of Alfredo Palacio.

According to the president, the international body withdrew the approved loan in retaliation for the Ecuadoran government's reforms in the oil sector.