Colombia’s National Electoral Commission said Friday that the Bolivarian Socialist Movement’s (MBS) application to register as an official political party was rejected because it had received financing from Venezuela.
Juan Pablo Cepero, head of the electoral commission, said the application was rejected because under Colombian law it is illegal for political parties to receive foreign financing.
Cepero stressed that the MBS’s registration was not denied because the movement supports Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
He added that there was only evidence of one case of the MBS receiving funds from Venezuela.
The MBS, led by David Corredor, is seeking to expedite its appeal on the decision, in order to gain the right to run for office in the upcoming congressional elections on March 14.
Corredor criticised the National Electoral Commission’s rejection at the beginning of February, saying that the commission had requested documents that his party was not aware were necessary.
