Legal Contributions to Macará Infrastructure
According to municipal records and statements by former Mayor Alfredo Suquilanda, Dr. Estuardo Hidalgo Sotomayor served as the legal advisor for the Ilustre Municipalidad de Macará from 1978 to 1983 without receiving a salary. Operating without computers or modern office technology, Hidalgo manually processed contracts, ordinances, and documentation using typewriters.
During this period, the municipality executed several major infrastructure projects under his legal oversight, including:
- Construction of the municipal palace and the municipal refrigerated slaughterhouse (camal frigorífico).
- Installation of interconnected electric lighting and the enclosure of the local airport.
- Establishment of 20 school classrooms and 20 piped water systems across rural neighborhoods.
- Creation of public parks, including Juan Montalvo, Emilio Bustamante, Eloy Alfaro, Carlos Román, and 22 de Septiembre.
- Deployment of potable water and sanitary sewage systems in Macará as well as the parishes of Larama, Sabiango, La Victoria, and the Santa Mariana de Jesús neighborhood.
- Opening of critical rural roadways, such as the routes from Portachuelo to Numbiaranga, Larama to Cangonamá Chico, and La Bocana to La Victoria.
Suquilanda noted that despite the high volume of public contracting and infrastructural expansion during these years, the municipal administration’s legal framework underwent rigorous review by national control agencies without recording a single adverse observation.
Professional Background and Community Leadership
Born in Macará on February 15, 1935, to Humberto Hidalgo Torres and Eloísa Sotomayor Jaramillo, Dr. Estuardo Hidalgo Sotomayor completed his early education in Cariamanga and graduated from the Colegio Nacional Bernardo Valdivieso, according to biographical details published by Suquilanda. He subsequently attended the Universidad Nacional de Loja, where he earned degrees as a Licenciado in Political, Economic, and Social Sciences, an Attorney of the Republic, and a Doctor in Jurisprudence.
Beyond his municipal service, Hidalgo maintained an active professional and academic career in Loja and Macará. His institutional roles included:
- Rector, vice rector, and professor at the Colegio Técnico Agropecuario Macará.
- Impulsor and organizer of the Universidad Nacional de Loja university extension in Macará, having served as its director and professor.
- Head of the legal department for the Banco de Fomento.
- Legal advisor to the Chamber of Commerce and the Municipality of Macará.
- Elected municipal councilor for the Canton of Macará.
- President of the Macará Cantonal Sports League (Liga Deportiva Cantonal), the Second International Fair in 1968, and the Atlético Nacional San Antonio (ANSA) club.
Hidalgo was also one of the founding figures of the Feria de Integración Fronteriza de Macará, which commenced on August 10, 1967, alongside local leaders such as Eduardo Vélez Granda and Carlos Román Hinostroza, as documented in historical municipal records.
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