Government accepts resignation of Atacama regional minister and reveals confidential administrative investigation

The Ministry General Secretariat of Government accepted the voluntary resignation of Sebastián Fergadiotti López from the position of Regional Ministerial Secretary of Government for the Atacama Region, effective March 11, 2026. The decision is recorded in Decree No. 7, dated March 11, 2026, published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile No. 44,568, on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, Section I, pages 1 and 2 (official reference: CVE 2879510). The same official text reveals that, prior to the resignation, it had been ordered to initiate a confidential disciplinary procedure within that regional office.

The decree is issued under the authority of Articles 32 No. 10 and 35 of the Political Constitution of the Republic (Supreme Decree No. 100, 2005, of the Ministry General Secretariat of the Presidency), Article 26 of Law No. 18,575 on the general bases of State Administration, and Articles 2 letter k) and 62 of Law No. 19,175, the constitutional organic law on Regional Government and Administration. It also invokes Article 6 of Law No. 20,955 on Senior Public Management and Article 7 letter b) of Law No. 18,834, the Administrative Statute.

The appointment and the resignation letter

Fergadiotti López, identity card No. 19,042,209-7, had been appointed to the position via Supreme Decree No. 14, 2024, of the Ministry General Secretariat of Government, effective December 23, 2024. He held grade 6 of the E.U.S. as the ministry’s representative in the region and a direct collaborator of the Regional Presidential Delegate.

According to the recitals of Decree No. 7, the resignation was submitted by the seremi himself via a letter dated January 27, 2026, effective as of March 11, 2026. The act bears the signatures of the President of the Republic, José Antonio Kast Rist, and the Minister General Secretariat of Government, Mara Sedini Viancos, and was transcribed by the Undersecretary General of Government, José Francisco Lagos Garrido.

A disciplinary procedure prior to the departure

Numeral 2 of the resolutive part of the decree orders to take note that, prior to the date of the resignation letter, it was arranged to initiate a disciplinary procedure in the Regional Ministerial Secretariat of Government for the Atacama Region. The measure was adopted through confidential resolution No. 93/2025, dated November 27, 2025, from the same ministry.

The text warns that this process could eventually determine the administrative responsibility of the official, in which case the Comptroller General of the Republic will be informed.

The scope of the oversight body

The Comptroller General of the Republic, through its Public Function Division, issued the supplementary decree via official letter No. OF109560/2026, from Santiago, June 9, 2026, signed by the head of the Division, Alejandro Gonzalo Riquelme Montecinos. The oversight body took notice of the document as it complied with the law, but noted that Fergadiotti López is currently subject to an administrative summary proceeding.

Pursuant to the fourth paragraph of Article 147 of Law No. 18,834, the Comptroller’s Office specified that such disciplinary processes must continue their normal processing until their total conclusion, even if the officials have ceased to hold the position. Should responsibility be determined, the sanction established by the merits of the summary must be recorded in the respective official personnel file.

The procedure is framed within Resolutions No. 36 of 2024, which establishes rules for exemption from the “toma de razón” (legal review) process, and No. 8 of 2025, which complements and modifies it, both from the Comptroller General of the Republic.

The publication of this decree formally closes the departure of the Seremi of Atacama, but leaves a relevant flank open: the resignation does not extinguish the ongoing summary proceeding, meaning that any eventual administrative sanction could be recorded in the former official’s personnel file. For readers in the region, the document confirms that the political leadership of the Ministry General Secretariat of Government in Atacama was resolved amidst a confidential disciplinary procedure that is only now becoming public.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,568, Wednesday, October 7, 2026, Section I, pp. 1-2 (official reference: CVE 2879510).