A Green Alliance Party congresswoman is pushing a blank vote in protest of the current nominees for Comptroller General, all of whom have been embroiled in corruption scandals, local radio reported Wednesday.
The chamber representative for the Green Alliance Party, Angelica Lozano, is campaigning for the chamber to vote “blank” with her in the election for new comptroller general, according to Colombia’s Caracol Radio.
Lozano also noted that there are no women nominees, and that the election thereby fails to meet the rulings of the Constitutional Court established in the quota law.
“I will listen to the three applicants who aspire for the position of comptroller, but that does not mean I will vote for any of them,” said the congresswoman.
The candidates consists of Gilberto Rondon, Edgardo Jose Maya Villazon, and Carlos Ardila Ballesteros. The election will be on August 19, according to El Espectador newspaper.
Scandals
During his post as Chamber Representative of Santander from 1997 to 1998, Carlos Ardila Ballesteros was audited by the then comptroller Carlos Escobar. Escobar found that Ardila had authorized trips abroad that totaled $470,700, according to El Tiempo newspaper.
The second candidate, Edgardo Jose Maya Villazon, was sued for allegedly harassing an employee who reported Villazon for irregularities such as collecting money for filing investigations. The harassment purportedly lasted from 1992 to 2001. The Supreme Court refused to open a case against Villazon because it exceeded the five year statute of limitations, according to La Fm radio station.
Comptroller candidate number three, Gilberto Rondon, was accused on Tuesday of accepting nearly $80,000 from criminal drug organization “Cartel de Cali” in exchange for delaying the extradition of drug kingpin Miguel Rodriguez, according to an article published in Las 2 Orillas. Rondon rejected the allegations and criticized “Las 2 Orillas” for publishing the story without any evidence.
Many believe Rondon will win the race and become the next comptroller, according to El Espectador.
Sources
- Voto en blanco para elección de contralor propone Angélica Lozano (Caracol Radio)
- Propenen voto en blanco para eleccion de Contralor (El Espectador)
- El cuestionado ternado de la Corte Suprema para la Contraloría (El Tiempo)
- Archivan proceso contra el exprocurador general Edgardo José Maya Villazón (La Fm)
- Candidato a contralor Gilberto Rondón denuncia “guerra cochina” en su contra (El Espectador)
- Gilberto Rondón y Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela: ¿una relación con cuentas pendientes? (Las 2 Orillas)
