(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The majority of people in Colombia would be in favour of re-electing president Álvaro Uribe once again, according to a poll by CNC. 66 per cent of respondents support Uribe’s potential third term, while 34 per cent oppose it.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The majority of people in Colombia would be in favour of re-electing president Álvaro Uribe once again, according to a poll by CNC. 66 per cent of respondents support Uribe’s potential third term, while 34 per cent oppose it.
In addition, 68 per cent of respondents say they would vote for Uribe if he becomes a candidate in the 2010 presidential election, while 32 per cent say they would not.
Uribe has been Colombia’s president since August 2002. In the May 2006 election, he won a new four-year term with 62.2 per cent of all cast ballots. He was able to run again after pro-Uribe lawmakers in the House of Representatives and the Constitutional Court officially sanctioned a plan to allow immediate presidential re-election. After issuing its ruling, the court warned that the clause was not valid for the unlimited re-election of the head of state.
Uribe has been commended for improving the economy and for his security policies, especially his hard stand against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a radical left-wing armed group. However, his administration is currently under great strain. Sixty-seven lawmakers—the vast majority of who are Uribe supporters—are being investigated for alleged ties with right-wing, illegal paramilitary armies. The accusations range from receiving the backing of war lords for electoral benefits, to directly participating in select killings and massacres for political or economic purposes. Uribe’s first cousin and close political ally, Mario Uribe, is one of the lawmakers currently under investigation.
In October 2007, Luis Guillermo Giraldo—leader of the pro-Uribe Party of the U—announced he would create the "promoters’ committee", a group charged with gathering signatures to call a referendum on whether Uribe should be allowed to run for a third term in office. Uribe has not yet made an official statement regarding his possible re-election.
On Apr. 21, Colombia’s chief federal prosecutor Mario Iguarán opened an investigation into allegations that Uribe offered an illegal bribe to a congresswoman in 2006 in exchange for her vote in favour of allowing his re-election. Yidis Medina turned herself in and declared that she changed her mind and voted in favour of re-election in Congress two years ago after the president offered management posts in three different government agencies for herself or her political supporters. Medina claimed she decided to tell the truth because the government "failed to fulfill its promises."
Uribe responded to Medina’s allegations and denied any wrongdoing, declaring, "The government persuades, it doesn’t pressure or buy people’s consciences. (…) It does not tolerate corruption."
Polling Data
Do you support Álvaro Uribe’s re-election?
|
Support |
66% |
|
Oppose |
34% |
If Uribe becomes a candidate in the next presidential election, would you vote for him?
|
Yes |
68% |
|
No |
32% |
Source: CNC
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,000 Colombian adults in 17 cities, conducted on Apr. 29 and Apr. 30, 2008. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
