Less than 40 days before Mayor Claudia López hands over the keys to the Liévano Palace, the Bogotá Council warned that the mayor elected by the New Liberalism, Carlos Fernando Galán, would receive a city in debt.
This was announced by Rolando González, councilor for Cambio Radical, who explained, after an analysis carried out on the Bogotá budget project for 2024, that he found several alerts due to the high level of public debt with which the capital remains.
The lobbyist insisted that the next government will receive the city with a debt close to 9 billion pesos, “which means that for every 100 pesos that enter the district’s coffers, the city owes 56.6 pesos. And Bogotá’s debt levels have not looked so high since 20 years ago, when the proportion of debt compared to income was 63.5 pesos.”
You may be interested in: Green councilor with the most votes does not agree to be a member of Carlos Fernando Galán’s Government: know his reasons
Likewise, to the question: “How does the district’s debt affect the pockets of Bogota residents?”, he responded that one of the biggest effects is that part of the budget must be allocated to pay part of the balance in the red, since by 2024 The debt service amounts to 2.16 trillion pesos, which reduces the budgetary margin for the new Mayor Galán to assume the investments and finance his first year in office.
“The new government will hardly be able to sustain the level of social spending that the current administration had; the city will have to go back into debt or look for other financing alternatives, which can generate a dangerous cycle in the management of the city’s finances. This is an aspect that should concern the incoming government the most, because it will receive a city with a debt balance of 9 billion pesos,” he emphasized.
In addition to this, the councilor detailed, in the period between 2024 and 2027, these will be the periods in which the most debt service will have to be paid, affecting the availability of resources for the coming years.
Regarding the sustainability of the city’s Integrated Public Transportation System, he clarified that part of the fiscal gap generated by TransMilenio for more than 2 billion pesos each year was financed with debt. And he stressed that, if this aspect is not resolved, it will be the users who will be affected because the fare would increase.
Finally, he stated that programs such as Jóvenes a la U could be left in suspense, given that it was financed with credit, which in the near future could mean that the generation of new places in higher education will be affected.
TransMilenio fare could rise in 2024, warned councilor
Councilor Óscar Ramírez Vahos, of the Democratic Center party, warned that the TransMilenio fare could increase in 2024, after analyzing the budget that will be allocated for next year.
“In terms of mass transportation, as the 2024 budget is formulated and as we have warned with great concern, the operating costs of the system would lead to an increase in the fare, leaving the fare at 3,100 pesos, representing 25% per month. of household income in strata 1 and 2″, he indicated.
Ramírez Vahos asked the outgoing administration and, above all, the incoming administration, to work so that the city has a model that manages the mobility needs of Bogota residents with efficiency and quality of service, “seeking to counteract the burden it represents for the capital and its taxpayers, sustain the financing of the Tariff Stabilization Fund, which is already in deficit.” With Infobae
