Colombia’s House of Representatives Wednesday afternoon resumed the
last vote on the referendum needed for the re-election possibility of
President Alvaro Uribe. The vote had been suspended late Tuesday after
more than half of the Representatives declared themselves impeded to
vote.
before voting on the referendum, the Representatives will have to vote on each individual request for impediment. If the House doesn’t dismiss the impediments, the initiative to call for a referendum will not be able to achieve the necessary majority.
Most Representatives considered themselves impeded to vote because of a preliminary investigation carried out by the Supreme Court about the lawmakers’ alleged illegal approval of a preceding referendum.
The Supreme Court received another demand of illegal conduct surrounding the referendum, this time by presidential candidate Rafael Pardo. The Liberal claims the government used government funds to bribe Senators to pass the bill. The Comptroller General’s Office will also investigate these allegations.
The current referendum is needed to force a constitutional change that will allow the President to run for a third consecutive term in office.