A new leader of Colombian conservative liberal party Cambio Radical was elected Wednesday night, reported local media Thursday.
Senator Antonio Guerra de la Espriella from the Carribean region of the northwestern Sucre department was selected by senators and representatives of the party. Both the political party and the senator have been accused of having links to paramilitaries in the past, ties which Guerra has denied.
The party has been directed by a collective body composed of six congress members, three senators and three representatives since December 2011. The party will now rotate leadership every six months between different senators and representatives.
“The principal task has to be the politics and nothing else in order to consolidate the union and the relations between Senate and House,” Guerra said as reported by RCN Radio.
Guerra highlighted the importance of his role representing his party in the “Round Table of National Unity,” a meeting between a coalition of some of Colombia’s most prominent political parties.