Senator-elect Alvaro Uribe claimed on Thursday he has “witnesses” to a 2012 payment made to President Juan Manuel Santos by a former campaign manager currently embroiled in a drug trafficking scandal.
Uribe urged an investigation to confirm whether former advisor and campaign manager J.J. Rendon gave $2 million to the financial campaign managers of Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos’ in 2012 to cover-up cash problems in his successful 2010 campaign, W Radio reported.
Rendon recently stepped down as Santos’ campaign manager amid allegations that he received $12 million in 2011 from Colombia’s top drug traffickers for his part in crafting a proposal to shut down the drug trade.
MORE: Political uproar over 2011 Govt. negotiations with drug traffickers
“The 2010 campaign cost much more than was projected,” said Uribe, according toEl Espectador.
Uribe went on to say that he has witnesses and evidence to support his allegations, but will only reveal them if and when judicial authorities open an investigation.
The senator-elect and former President also alluded to the wiretapping scandal that recently ripped through Oscar Ivan Zuluaga’s presidential campaign, defending Luis Alfonso Hoyos, who stepped down as Zuluaga’s campaign manager on Wednesday after questions about his ties to the scandal.
Zuluaga, candidate for Uribe’s Democratic Center party (Centro Democratico), is projected to be the main contender against Santos in the upcoming May 25 presidential elections.
MORE: Zuluaga’s campaign manager resigns over wiretapping scandal
Uribe in turn defended Zuluaga, saying that if the candidate had known about the “irregular activities” of one of his campaign members, he “would have acted.”
Sources
- Uribe dice que J.J. Rendón entregó US$2 millones a campaña de Santos en 2010 (El Espectador)
- Uribe sugiere que J.J. Rendón entregó 2 millones de dólares a campaña de Santos (W Radio)
