Fifteen days before the presidential elections, Attorney General’s Office initiated disciplinary proceedings and announced to the mayor of Medellin the temporary suspension of the position, Daniel Quintero Street, for his alleged and repeated participation in politics in the current election contest. On the same charges, the mayor of Ibagué made the same decision against Andrés Hurtado: he is being investigated for allegedly supporting the Fico Gutiérrez campaign.
(In context: Daniel Quintero was removed from his post as mayor of Medellin)
Quintero’s case is the one that has had the greatest impact, as he is the president of Colombia’s second largest capital city and has received repeated complaints in recent months about his involvement in politics. In fact, some of the main bishops of Medellin are in the campaign of Gustavo Petro today.
The Attorney General’s decision came hours after the Paisa president posted a video on his social networks in which he was staged using a tool, and said: “change, first“.
The text of the message is the same as used in the presidential campaign. Gustavo Petro to invite citizens to vote for him and achieve victory in the first round.
(Continue reading: Attorney General suspends Ibagué Mayor for participating in politics)
In your advertisement, Attorney General Margarita Cabello “Public officials should keep in mind that interference in politics is not reduced to an explicit demand to vote for a candidate, but rather contemplates any action that creates alliances or support that upsets the electoral balance in the collective imagination. competition”.
(We recommend: Daniel Quintero: Attorney General’s strong reaction after the suspension)
In addition to the Medellin officials who joined the Historical Pact, Quintero’s wife, Diana Marcela Osorio, who is not a civil servant and therefore has no legal limitations, openly declared herself in Petro’s favor: “In my house, if the puppy can vote and the kitten can too, instead we will all vote Gustavo Petro president and Francia Márquez vice president‘ he said in an interview.
The question that remains after the suspension decision of the Attorney General is as follows: How will this determination affect the presidential campaign?
With a little over two weeks before the first presidential round, any status can be added or removed. And this, of course, is no exception.
(Another news: Petro is the leader with 40%, followed by Fico with 21%: Yanhaas poll)
According to Uribe senator Ernesto Macías, the decision of the Public Ministry was due to the fact that “the mayor of Medellín put the Constitution and the law as a ruana”.
However, for Senator Rodrigo Lara, what had just happened was “a divine surprise, A tribute to Petro because he will “make a very bold move” in the election and even let you win in the first round”.
Could the Attorney General fire a mayor in Colombia today? According to current regulations, yes. While the Continental Justice System has expressed reservations over last year’s constitutional amendment to change disciplinary norms to the detriment of popularly elected officials, the norm is fully in place internally and awaits review by the Supreme Court.
This Court has several times affirmed the legality of the disciplinary system in Colombia, with the understanding that the Attorney General has the powers conferred by the Constitution. elected by popular vote. There are also instances where any disciplinary decision that warrants due process is reviewed.
However, they argue from the Historical Pact and other sectors that the Public Ministry cannot touch those elected by the vote, and they also questioned why the Office of the Attorney General did so compared to other cases, especially the case recently led by General Eduardo Zapateiro. No injunction has been taken.
In addition to Zapateiro, Defense Minister Diego Molano was accused of allegedly meddling in politics, specifically against Petro.
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Andrés Dávila, a professor at the Javeriana School of Political Science and International Relations, underlined that this was a decision communicated on Twitter as a first precaution, and already explains the lightness of the matter. “We have a Lawyer who makes decisions on Twitter,” he says.
In addition to this suspension of Mayor Quintero for participating in politics, Yann Basset, a professor at the Universidad del Rosario, said that the Office of the Attorney General’s It should send other transparency messages such as To attract the attention of the President or, for example, to sanction General Zapateiro.
“This is definitely something that will give arguments to Petro’s campaign, and it could turn out to be in his favor in the election, and from that point of view, it could somehow turn against the Attorney General’s office, as with Petro’s campaign premise”.
(Continue reading: Quintero mayoral officials resign to join Petro)
The fact is that what happened to Quintero and Hurtado is that those elected by the people in the country, especially the mayors, comply with the disciplinary norms and that the body created by the Constitution and the Law should investigate them and, if possible, punish them.
The Inter-American Court says that this should only be done by criminal judges, and that this is contrary to the development of modern disciplinary law and could lead to the de facto collapse of the criminal justice system. In Colombia, the decision is once again made by the Constitutional Court, which reviewed the regulatory act in the country last year at the request of the IDH System. Colombia. , by Gustavo Petro of Bogota Mayor’s Office.
POLITICS
Source: Exame
I am Bret Jackson, a professional journalist and author for Gadget Onus, where I specialize in writing about the gaming industry. With over 6 years of experience in my field, I have built up an extensive portfolio that ranges from reviews to interviews with top figures within the industry. My work has been featured on various news sites, providing readers with insightful analysis regarding the current state of gaming culture.
