Home » Business » Regional Elections in Colombia: An Overview of the Bogota Mayoral Race and Controversies

Regional Elections in Colombia: An Overview of the Bogota Mayoral Race and Controversies

The next October 29 will be the regional elections in Colombia in which mayors, governors, among other regional corporations will be elected. In the case of Bogota. There are nine registered candidates to become Mayor and succeed Claudia López. In case of reaching a second round, there will be a new mayor until November 19.

Can read: Bogotá Mayor’s Office: They request the revocation of the candidacy of Gustavo Bolívar

In this electoral duel will face Gustavo Bolívar, Carlos Fernando Galán, Juan Daniel Oviedo, Rodrigo Lara, General (r) Jorge Luis Vargas, Diego Molano and Jorge Enrique Robledowho hope to obtain 40% of the votes and gain an advantage of 10 percentage points over their closest competitor.

In the midst of the campaign, which is getting hotter as the voting approaches, Semana Magazine carried out the third debate with the candidates, which lasted more than two hours.

Although the main topics of the debate focused on security, mobility and education, in the midst of the discussions that were generated there were some statements that particularly attracted the attention of those who saw the debate.

In the case of Gustavo Bolívar, Petrism candidate, a statement about donating his salary as mayor sparked controversysince some remembered that he made the same promise when he was a senator and ended up doing what many consider a “cheat”.

“I can tell you that I am also going to donate my salary, the salary of a congressman or mayor does not make a difference in my income. I live off royalties, copyrights, writing my novels, thank God for the talent he gave me and my discipline, I have managed to earn very high salaries in the private world. Never in my life have I made a contract with the state,” Bolívar said.

After this statement, they recalled on social networks that although Bolívar donated his salary as a congressman, they consider that he cheated. The activist Daniel Briceño, who is now competing for a seat in the Bogotá Council for the Centro Democrático party, revealed a few days ago that Bolívar not only failed to donate his salary because he donated it to a non-profit foundation that he himself created and with it he would have received alleged tax benefits.

According to Briceño, Bolívar would have sent 273 million pesos to the Manos Limpias foundation, which is run by his nephew, and there he obtained a tax reduction by the Colombian State, which grants certain exemptions to those who carry out social works. That foundation was founded by himself in 2011 and today he directs his nephew Germán Calvo Bolívar ”, denounced the candidate for the Council.

It may interest you: Gustavo Bolívar criticizes the delivery of guarantees of the Historical Pact: “A failure”

Briceño also assured that the former senator and current mayoral candidate reported these deliveries of money in his income statements before the Dian, which allowed him to receive tax reductions.

Video of the promise of Gustavo Bolívar

2023-08-14 19:48:29
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