BOGOTA.- A new scandal around the financing of Gustavo Petro’s presidential campaign It adds to the already existing doubts. This time it is about 600 million pesos that were contributed by a powerful oil union and that do not appear in the financial statements of the current president’s campaign delivered to the electoral authority.
According to information from Blu Radio, as stated in an audit document from the National Assembly of Delegates of the Petroleum Industry Workers Union (USO) It was agreed to deliver resources for the amount referred to to support the Petro’s campaign for the second round.
The document referred to by the Colombian media was the minutes drawn up after a General Assembly of the USO on June 8 and 9, 2022, in Santander. At this meeting, the union members approved the delivery of 600 million pesos destined to “strengthen the second round, specifically for election day, transportation and food. Endorse what was delivered.”
In addition, the Colombian media also had access to the list of payments for the campaign made by USO in which transfers for 500 million pesos appear recorded, 100 million pesos less than the amount that was approved at the union assembly and which was recorded in the record.
The transfers that appear in the payment list were destined for the second electoral round on June 19, 2022, 10 days after the USO General Assembly.
The contributions were used for transportation expenses, refreshments and financial contributions for the delegates from Cartagena, Huila, Tolima Yopal and Bogotá. Likewise, resources were detailed to pay for the printing of Colombia Humana posters and advertising services.
Another of the inconsistencies found in the payment relationship is that there were also transfers dated in May 2022, before the first round of the presidential elections. Likewise, only 12 payments appear in the balance sheet in the name of Colombia Humana and the Historical Pact coalition, which all add up to 61 million pesos.
USO confirms contributions
The president of the USO, César Loza, stated that there was an execution of 600 million pesos to support Petro’s campaign in 2022but assured that they were not transferred directly to the treasury or the campaign team.
“The highest authority of the union made the decision to approve resources for Gustavo Petro’s campaign and we executed 600 million, but a peso was never transferred to the campaign’s national treasury, to the accounts officially managed by President Gustavo’s campaign. Petro, nor to the regional campaigns,” said Loza.
The union leader indicated that USO has “always” supported alternative electoral campaigns and that the contributions given to Petro’s campaign are part of that.
“We have always supported these campaigns, but we ourselves hire the advertising, the billboards, we assume the cost of the logistics involved in gathering workers, we have to pay for travel, transportation, food and it is a decision that the union organization executes autonomously. “, held.
The opacity in the administration of the funds contributed by the USO to the Petro campaign is added to the other irregularities in the financing that are being investigated, such as the 500 million pesos delivered by Fecode and the 15,000 million pesos mentioned by Armando Benedetti.
Precisely, this Wednesday, the president of Ecopetrol, Ricardo Roa, who was Petro’s campaign manager, went before the National Electoral Council (CNE) to talk about the irregularities investigated regarding the financing of the campaign.
Source: With information from Semana / El Colombiano
