Colombia’s National Electoral Council (CNE) clarified on Saturday that the investigation into President Gustavo Petro’s election campaign for a possible violation of spending limits, does not question the immunity of the president, who for days has insisted that there is a coup d’état against him.
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“In the particular case of the administrative investigation to which the President of the Republic refers, there is no legal possibility that calls into question presidential immunity,” the CNE said in a statement in response to Petro’s claims.
That entity added: “Therefore, any allusion or presumption to the contrary disregards our legal system and is completely outside the powers of the National Electoral Council.”
Last week it was learned that a CNE investigation concluded that Petro’s 2022 election campaign violated the spending limits established in the law and that prohibited sources of financing were used.
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Based on the results of that investigation, the CNE plenary chamber will decide whether or not to open a formal investigation against Petro’s campaign, whose manager was the current president of the state oil company Ecopetrol, Ricardo Roa.
President Gustavo Petro
EFE
The theory of the coup d’état
However, the president insists that it is a conspiracy. to remove him from power and has even gone so far as to say that they are seeking to assassinate him.
Last Thursday, in a fiery speech he gave in Armenia, capital of the department of Quindío (center), Petro insisted on the conspiracy against him and said: “the order is given.”
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“It is the mafia that pays for the Colombian president to be assassinated or removed from office as quickly as possible,” he stated.
Yesterday, on his X account, he insisted that the alleged coup d’état will begin next Monday and that is why this weekend a popular assembly will reaffirm its support in Bogotá.
“On Monday the tie strike begins. On Saturday we will meet with the popular national assembly at the National University,” wrote the head of state on his X account.
This Saturday he insisted again on the coup theory and said on X: “There are 10,000 popular leaders from all over the country who are meeting today in Bogotá. We are going to stop the coup. They will not pass!”
For this reason, the CNE stated today that “In light of the repeated statements made by the President of the Republic, which are of general knowledge, he clarifies that all his actions are strictly institutional and are strictly within the jurisdiction granted by the Constitution and the laws.”
The CNE added that in this situation, “Institutional stability and the security of the officials of the National Electoral Council must be guaranteed.”
The charges that the president would face would remain in the administrative sphere, which is the jurisdiction of the CNE, but the situation could change if the organization sends copies to the House Accusations Commission, who is the natural judge of the president, which could subject him to impeachment.
EFE
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