Bogotá, Nov 12 (EFE) .- Colombian President Iván Duque signed this Friday the General Budget of the Nation for the fiscal period of 2022, which amounts to 350.4 billion pesos (about 90,223 million dollars).
The head of state explained on Twitter that the budget “prioritizes the allocation of resources in social care for vulnerable populations, support for economic growth and job creation.”
When breaking down the items, the president assured that 49.5 billion pesos (about 12,745 million dollars) will be allocated to education, while defense and police will receive 42.6 billion pesos (about 10,969 million dollars).
41.9 billion pesos (about 10,788 million dollars) correspond to health and social protection; 34.7 billion pesos (about 8,935 million dollars) were earmarked for work; the hacienda was assigned 24.3 billion pesos (about 6,257 million dollars) and social inclusion and reconciliation, 23.2 billion pesos (about 5,973 million dollars).
By signing the budget, Duque also gave free rein to the modification of the Guarantees Law approved in Congress and which sparked controversy, to the point that a judge blocked the changes.
The Law of Guarantees is a norm that promotes the transparent use of public resources and limits the hiring of public entities at times of elections in the interests of equal conditions for all candidates.
Colombia will hold Senate and House of Representatives elections on March 13, 2022, while the first round of the presidential elections will be on May 29 and the second, if necessary, on June 19.
Political sectors consider that with the modification of this law, mayors and governors can “do politics”, that is, make unnecessary hiring at election time and thereby influence the balance between candidates for Congress or the Presidency.
A few days ago, the Third Administrative Court of the Bogotá Circuit ordered to abstain from applying the modification made to the Law of Guarantees to protect “the rights to due process, equality and impartiality in the electoral process.”
