Paris Soir - Colombia's presidential favorite apologizes for drunken speech

NYSE - LSE

CMSD	0.18%	21.96	$
SCS	0.51%	9.76	$
AZN	0.8%	67.59	$
NGG	0.87%	72.11	$
GSK	1.56%	35.93	$
VOD	1.5%	9.31	$
RBGPF	100%	63.59	$
CMSC	0.18%	21.82	$
BTI	1.27%	42.37	$
BCC	0.83%	93.47	$
JRI	1.29%	12.4	$
BCE	1.91%	22.04	$
RELX	1.92%	52.2	$
BP	2.33%	28.32	$
RYCEF	-1.5%	9.36	$
RIO	1.74%	58.17	$

Colombia's presidential favorite apologizes for drunken speech

POLITICS 08.02.2022

Colombia's presidential favorite apologizes for drunken speech

The front-runner in Colombia's May presidential election apologized on Tuesday for a speech he gave the day before while under the influence of alcohol, which drew criticism and jeers from his opponents.

Text size:

Gustavo Petro admitted he had been tired and jet-lagged after a trip to Europe the week before and "did not handle well alcohol consumed in private before the meeting in Girardot," a city 80 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of the capital Bogota.

"I apologize to those who attended the event, a commitment I promised to honor despite my fatigue," Petro said on Twitter.

In the video of his speech, which was widely shared on Colombian social media, the senator, who was once a member of a far-left guerrilla group, proclaims: "May the red flags be raised again, may this city be called the red capital of Colombia again!"

He went on to attack local voters who supported the right-wing ex-president Alvaro Uribe and then the current conservative head of state Ivan Duque.

"How can you do that if you voted for Uribe, if you voted for Duque?" he says, speaking abruptly and with jerky gestures.

"The reality has been the economic destruction of the territory... the reality has been to condemn the people of Girardot to poverty."

His opposition were quick to pile on.

"Some politicians get drunk on power, others seem to have already done so... Can you imagine what Petro Gustavo would be like as president?" quipped right-wing candidate and Uribe loyalist Oscar Ivan Zuluaga on Twitter.

"They say the drunks are telling the truth... There are doubts about what would happen in Colombia if he were to win," said far-right senator Maria Fernanda Cabal.

Petro, 61, is currently leading the polls for the presidential election in Colombia, historically ruled by the right.

The first round will take place on May 29.

C.Blanc--PS

Featured

Taxes on super rich and tech giants stall under Trump

Global tax plans targeting billionaires and multinational companies are running aground, with the United States torpedoing reforms under President Donald Trump.

'Pandora's box': alarm bells in Indonesia over rising military role

Greater military influence in government, reporters under threat and a stuttering economy -- Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto's first six months in power have triggered alarm bells for activists worried about a return to the country's authoritarian roots.

Another round of anti-Trump protests hits US cities

Thousands of protesters rallied Saturday in New York, Washington and other cities across the United States for a second major round of demonstrations against Donald Trump and his hard-line policies.

US, Iran report progress in nuclear talks, will meet again

The United States and Iran made progress in a second round of high-stakes talks on Tehran's nuclear programme on Saturday and agreed to meet again next week, both sides said.