A Colombian congressman has accused two former presidents of misconduct concerning the dispute with Nicaragua, local media reported Wednesday.
According to radio station La W, opposition Congressman German Navas filed a complaint of indignity and misconduct to the House of Representatives’ Commission of Accusations against ex-President Andres Pastrana and his successor Alvaro Uribe.
The complaint is in relation to how the ex heads of state handled the dispute with Nicaragua over control of waters surrounding the Colombian island of San Andres. The Congressman indicated the methods adopted by the former presidents were poor and deemed neglectful.
Navas criticized the former presidents for “the negligence with which the negotiation was handled,” citing a report published in 2003 by the writer Alberto Lozano, “The Threat of Nicaragua.” He went on to claim that “more than 13 years of warnings that what was done [by the former presidents] was wrong was not taken in to account.”
Navas also claimed that, despite the problem started during Pastrana’s term in office in 2001, the issue gained notoriety only six months before Uribe took over office, putting partial blame on each of the former president’s shoulders.
The House’s Commission of Accusations must now address the claim, investigate the alleged failures of the former heads of state and present its findings to Congress once it has completed the investigation.