A Colombian congressman is seeking a referendum to revoke the country’s congress and hold immediate elections, Caracol Radio reported Monday.
Organizers of the referendum, sponsored by independent Senator Camilo Romero, have been given six months to collect 1.6 million signatures.
The official website supporting the referendum claims “today there is a widespread feeling of Colombians about the committing wrong and arbitrary acts, most of them by members of the Congress” going on to say “the straw that broke the camel’s back (…) was the approval of the Justice Reform in Congress” claiming that the controversial reform granting generous judicial benefits to congressmen “broke the spirit of the 1991 Constitution.”
The referendum was agreed on after the Congressman highlighted a section of the Colombian constitution stating ‘’the people have the power to revoke, at any time, lawmakers of their constitutional term.’’
If the required number of signatures are collected, a referendum will be called after which the Colombian people can decide whether new elections must be held.