In the first forum on Advances in the Electoral Process, in which the control entity summoned the agencies of the National Surveillance System, the Attorney General of the Nation, Margarita Cabello Blanco, warned that the “Prosecutor’s Office will be vigilant to avoid that public resources earmarked for social programs be used for activities of a political nature.”
The head of the Public Ministry asked the institutionality to articulate in order to achieve protection of public resources and so that they are not misused in proselytizing activities. Likewise, she requested citizenship so that they become permanent observers of the electoral process and report on situations that could put the right to vote at risk.
The Attorney recalled that for the sake of democracy and the right to participation, the control entity maintains the constitutional power to “investigate, investigate, penalize and suspend public servants, including those elected by the peopler“. He assured that the citizenry “There should be no doubt that we are going to use it when necessary”.
In this space in which the balance of surveillance and control of the electoral processes in 2023 was disclosed, the Attorney General also announced that Directive 007 was issued with recommendations regarding participation and political controversies and prohibitions in the process. electoral. And she released Circular 003 with the guidelines for monitoring compliance with public functions of regulation and application of police and punitive measures entrusted to municipal and district administrations, in relation to the form and sectorization to fix foreign electoral propaganda visual.
Complexity of the electoral process
As president of the National Electoral Commission, the Attorney General asserted that these elections will present a greater degree of complexity, because more than 120,000 candidates who aspire to the positions of local and departmental authorities, and local, municipal, public corporations will participate in them. district and departmental
In addition, he stressed that the system of open lists or preferential voting will concur in this process with that of closed lists, “which implies a great challenge for both the Electoral Organization and the Colombian State”. He explained that the Attorney General’s Office has identified a significant increase in the registration of Significant Groups of Citizens, compared to the last local elections of 2019. “Nationwide, 1,293 have registered”.
Finally, it concluded that, as the electoral calendar progresses, lThe Attorney General’s Office will continue to carry out preventive monitoring and issuing guidelines; for example, in contracting, restrictions of the Law of Guarantees, which begins four months before the election day, and what is related to the voting juries, the electoral witnesses, the electoral logistics, the development of the electoral day and the scrutinies.
Source: Attorney General’s Office