The government is “improvising”. That is the vision of Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, one of the most voted in the 2022 contest (223,167), who from his seat in Congress is one of the leaders of the small opposition that the Democratic Center makes to President Gustavo Petro .
In this conversation with EL COLOMBIANO, he assured that the president has ideological ministers, who only want to vindicate a political project and questioned the “coup” that, he said, the Executive is giving the Armed Forces.
The Historic Pact was trying to scrape votes from the Democratic Center. Is the party united?
“Although we are alone in Congress, we are the only representatives of citizens who do not vote for Petro. I don’t think there’s any chance that the Covenant or any other sector might infiltrate the unit we have.”
Can Rodolfo Hernández represent those who did not vote for Petro?
“Rodolfo resigned from the leadership he had. He took a position that distances himself from the 10.5 million people who elected him. The people who voted for him feel abandoned.”
You are going to be a speaker tax reform. What purpose does it have?
“My priority is that economic growth in Colombia, which today is the best in the world, continues like this. By proposing the reform as it is under the pretext of punishing the rich, investment will be discouraged, resources will be chased away and jobs will be destroyed; The most affected will be those with lower incomes and the middle class. The government must make an effort in austerity and savings”.
Why do you think there will be a backlash for the poor?
“There are chapters that directly hit the middle class, such as indirect taxes on consumption, regressive taxes on food and certain beverages that will make products more expensive and touch inflation. In addition, it impoverishes pensioners.
Gustavo Petro announced a reform of 70 billion, he lowered it to 50, when he presented it it was 25 and there is already talk that they would reduce the collection to between 17 and 20 billion.
But that is part of the negotiations, it always occurs with reforms and in all countries…
“I have no memory of one that started at 70 billion and ended at 17. That shows absolute improvisation because this government was not prepared to govern. The uncertainty that comes from improvisation hits the economy. They have no idea what they are going to use the money for because they justify the need for a reform with the fiscal situation, but this is not planned to meet the deficit and debt commitments.”
He says he was not prepared to govern. Is it the change that occurs between being opposition and executing?
“That shows that it is very different to criticize, slander, attack and destroy, which is what the opposition did, and today they come to have a responsibility that is obviously too great for them. They have not been able to form a government, there are many managerial positions to be appointed, they have not been able to establish priorities and they make isolated announcements, the ministers themselves have to back down.
What can be removed and put on the tax?
“The minister has said that he is willing to listen to proposals, but sometimes I see an intransigent position from the government. Ideological governments close the doors of dialogue and that is the greatest risk of this”.
Are the Petro ministers ideological?
“The vast majority of ministers with completely fanatics and that is going to hurt people because they are thinking of claiming a political project and not benefiting Colombians.”
Duque created two ministries and now Petro wants two more. How do you see the Equality and Peace portfolios?
“I am once morest creating new bureaucracy and the examples are different. Duque used some institutions, which already fulfilled that purpose, and elevated them to ministries. On the other hand, Petro is considering creating portfolios that will cost billions and respond more to an ideological whim than to a missionary planning of the country.”
The Ministry of Equalityamong other functions, would monitor the work of other portfolios that have social issues…
“The function of a ministry is not to monitor. If Francia Márquez wants to monitor public officials, he should aspire to the Attorney General’s Office, the Prosecutor’s Office or the Comptroller’s Office. The ministries must give a line of public policy and promote its execution through their own structures”.
Why is your party saying that there is a coup once morest the Armed Forces?
“In just a few days, Gustavo Petro has dealt frontal blows to the Military Forces and the Police, beginning with an unjustified absence from the transmission of command from the Dome. Appoint people from the M-19 in the National Intelligence Directorate and similar charges is an act of defiance. This government does not have a clear security policy and has been the protagonist of scenarios where they empower criminals and criminalize the Public Force.”
Is there a danger that the intelligence capacity of the Forces will be lost due to the departure of the 53 generals?
“Those generals represent more than 600 years of experience, much of it without a single investigation, with accolades and a history of service. Without a doubt, what this government is doing is going to weaken the intelligence capacity of the Armed Forces and the Police, removing it from the Ministry of Defense is disintegrating the joint capacity”.
How do you see total peace?
“Petro’s total peace is paving the way towards total impunity, it seems more like a concept of submission to all of us who have been above the law to reward the perpetrators. . Efforts must be made to achieve peace, but we need one that is real”.
The government has already taken a step lifting the arrest and extradition warrants once morest ELN negotiators. How do you see the space that Petro has given for the dialogues?
“Lifting them opens the way to total impunity. Gustavo Petro cannot make the mistake of turning the peace process into a political interest. We need a real peace, where the means and impunity are not justified. The government wants to jump into a scenario of political dialogue with criminals and drug traffickers and give benefits to those who today do not have the status of political organizations. What he proposes with certain sectors is as aberrant as if he had negotiated with Pablo Escobar.”
How do you see the possible legalization of the drug?
“If Colombia maintains the whim of legalize marijuana and cocaine That would condemn the country to not having the possibility of a single national traveling around the world, visas and free transit would end, our bank accounts would be closed, not a single Colombian peso would come out once more.”
Petro wants to deliver Monomers to the regime. What does he think of that?
“Monómeros has a fundamental social function. The underlying question is whether handing over the Board of Directors to the dictatorship also implies that the industrial capacity it has today will be lost.”