The second day of the 59 Banking Convention, which is celebrated in Cartagena, closed with a hot face to face between the Interior Minister Armando Benedetti, and the Congressmen Mauricio Gómez Amin, Jaime Raúl Salamanca, Carlos Julio González, Clara López, Nicolás Echeverri and Óscar Darío Pérez.
The stage was the panel ‘The voice of the congressmen’, moderated by the journalist Juan Lozano, which had three issues that lit the mood and passions of the panelists: the labor reform, The call ‘Decretazo’ For the Popular consultation of President Petro and democracy in the current political and pre -election debate.
Armando Benedetti Photo:Sergio Cárdenas | Time
The first to get on stage was Interior Minister Armando Benedetti, who with a bottle of water wet each phrase and in a leisurely tone explained the alleged vices that would have been committed during the sinking of the popular consultation on the night of May 14 at the Congress of the Republic.
He insisted: «The document was not read, and as such the law says that it does not exist and cannot be voted,» and stressed «two minutes closed the votes, they would have allowed at least 5 or 10 minutes: 49 senators voted» no «to the popular consultation and 47 pronounced in favor of the» yes «,» he recalled.
The head of the Interior portfolio recalled the details of that night Aciaga for the Petro government and listed one what he called as a fraud in the sinking of the consultation.
He also argued that false information is being generated: «There is talk of a coup d’etat. And the coups that we know in Latin America, Europe and the rest of the world are with armies in the streets, detained people, here none of this is happening.»
Benedetti and Sarabia greeted themselves in Cartagena. Photo:Private archive
After about 20 minutes of intervention in the middle of one or the occasional harangue, whistles and a shy handful of applause of the bankers and entrepreneurs present in the bank convention, Benedetti got off the podium and received a kiss and a hug of the chancellor Laura Sarabiawho listened to him sitting among the attendees.
Then the congressmen and the tone and brief smiles of Benedetti went on stage, we went to the screams and effervescence of a very heated senator Mauricio Gómez Amin, who had the first intervention.
«This is the Government that will go down in history as the one with the lowest execution of the last 20 years.» He then denied the alleged vices presented by Benedetti: “Yes, the proposition was read and it was debated for 9 hours, there was no desire, we had 9 hours of debate; but a labor reform will pass agreed for workers and employers, but Petro is not interested in reforms, he is only interested in the talk,” he said in an exalted voice.
‘Health reform must be given because we are in a system in crisis’
Interior Minister ensures that Decree will soon be published Photo:
Then, moderator Juan Lozano gave the voice to the president of the House of Representatives, Jaime Raúl Salamanca, who was more conciliatory, and cried out for a quieter democratic debate. Since I arrived we have managed to reconcile 6 reforms.
«The health reform must be given because we are in a system in crisis; the labor and pension reform, the same, if we continue in this logic of polarization we will lose all: my invitation is to do what we have done in the Chamber: sitting and dialogue. I invite you to stop thinking about 2026 and to think about the present. The Courts will have the last word, because we believe in the separation of powers.»
Not so conciliatory was Senator Carlos Julio González, with his historic Mexican mustache. One of the chiefs of the department of Huila, who was in fact his governor, as was his sister Sky González.
«In these discussions we are wasting time: meanwhile there are 500 thousand children who are deserting the classrooms and 750 thousand are repeating. Of every 10 Colombian children, 5 have mental problems … we have a disenchantment of Colombian youth. But we are not able to reach a labor consensus,» said Congressman Opita.
Reforms are the only way to close
social gaps and inequalities
Senator Clara López, from the historical pact, looking at him from his own, threw his pod to the energetic tone with which Senator Mauricio Gómez Amino started. She asked to lower the whole and words of thick caliber in the current debate.
«That brings constrictive to shout, to tell half truths. We have to recover another way. For example, with Paloma Valencia we present a proposition to create an accidental commission to take care of the word in the debates, and do the same in social networks and media. This commission has representatives of all the parties and seeks to reach agreements and overcome polarization,» said Senator López, who teamed him and also dispatched his vain. to the bank and business class that occupied the enclosure.
“The reforms are the only way to close social gaps and inequalities. It cannot be that with the tax and public spending system there can be no redistribution. We have to boost better working conditions, better social guarantees and benefits, payments of extra hours, the family deserves Sunday breaks: the production of the workforce is the responsibility of the companies. We are talking about guarantees that were conquered in the twentieth century. Workers, to social organizations: 2 billion pesos in just night surcharges passed workers to employers with the labor reform of 2002 … but the one we present, in the fourth commission they broke it and turned it into a reform that does not meet the expectations that the working class needs ”.
Nicolas Echeverri, senator of the Department of Antioquia, was also altered
“What is under discussion is the misuse of a constitutional tool and we cannot spend a billion pesos. Let’s put that money in the health sector that is definanced due to bad interventions of the government, because they destroyed and mistreat Congressmen.
On the other hand, Óscar Darío Pérez, representative to the Chamber of the Democratic Center for the Department of Antioquia, told the Government of imposing an agenda with the debates for the popular consultation in order to hide failures and possible acts of corruption.
«They are imposing the agenda. They want us to talk about the consultation but that covers the fiscal crisis in which the country is: 160 billion pesos of excess operation expenditure, fiscal deficit galloping. We go for a fiscal deficit that will be the greatest in history. We pay the Colombians. We should be talking about these problems,» Pérez concluded.
In addition, we invite you to see our documentary ‘Sexual exploitation in Cartagena: silenced voices’
Documentary of journalist Jineth Bedoya. Photo:
John Montaño
El Tiempo correspondent
Cartagena
In X: @pilotodecometas
