The Inspector General’s Office has opened investigations into eight Regional Autonomous Corporations (CARs) for alleged failure to appropriately manage the crisis caused by this winter’s severe weather, local media reported Wednesday.
The leadership of the CARs of Cundinamarca, Corpoboyaca, Cauca, Santander, Regional de Bucaramanga, Autonoma de Bolivar, Cardique and Cortolima, will be investigated for negligent behavior in the face of the crisis that has, over the course of a year, affected millions of Colombian families, according to newspaper El Espectador.
Accusations include failure to execute prevention strategies and follow up measures in regards to the rainy season, and failure to limit the damage caused by the natural phenomenon.
According to the Inspector General’s Office, the Inspector Delegate for Environmental Affairs, Oscar Dario Amaya Navas, has been placed in charge of moving forward the investigations against the general and provincial directors of the eight CARs.
In April, Vice President Angelino Garzon fiercely criticized a number of CARs for allegedly failing to conduct the necessary maintenance of rivers and canals which is causing massive floods in large parts of the country, and said he would ask the Prosecutor General’s Office to open criminal investigations into the entities.