AMERICA/COLOMBIA - Mgr. Salah Zuleta: "A true politician seeks the common good"

Wednesday, 22 June 2016 politics   bishops   development   environment  

Guajira (Agenzia Fides) - An invitation to the politicians of the department of La Guajira, so that in these times of crisis they unite and propose a single candidate for the upcoming elections, after the cancellation of the previous elections, comes from the Bishop of the diocese of Riohacha , His Exc. Mgr. Héctor Ignacio Salah Zuleta. The Bishop, yesterday met some journalists, and stressed that "in this way one avoids getting involved in an unnecessary, expensive, and dividing war, knowing that the only thing that encourages the research of effective solutions is unity over the diversity of parties".
According to the note sent to Fides from local sources, Mgr. Salah Zuleta added that no party or candidate will be able to solve the serious problems of La Guajira, without consent or alliances: "A real politician knows that the only raison d'etre of his office is the search for the common good, and this supreme desire should remain above ideologies, parties and disputes".
New elections in the department of La Guajira, are due to the fact that on 7 June 2016 the Council of State annulled the election of Oneida Pinto as Governor of the department, for failing to meet the one-year period that must elapse, according to the law, before presenting oneself after holding another elected office.
La Guajira, in the far north of Colombia, on the Atlantic Ocean, on the border with Venezuela, has been suffering a drought for three years, with serious consequences on food security and the health of the population. Environmental groups also report that multinational coal mining have monopolized the water in the area and its distribution. All this means that La Guajira is the Colombian department with the highest index of poverty (see Fides 16/06/2016). Mgr. Salah Zuleta denounced this serious situation on several occasions (see Fides 16/02/2016 and 03/02/2016). (CE) (Agenzia Fides, 22/06/2016)


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