Colombia’s National Electoral Council decided to launch a preliminary inquiry against the candidate for the Colombian Bolivarian Socialist Movement (MSB), David Corredor Cuellar,following a request by conservative pre-candidate for Colombia’s presidential elections, Marta Lucia Ramirez.
The purpose of the inquiry is to assess the activities revolving around the candidacy campaign of Corredor, in particular the signature collection process that his party has been conducting in order to amass sufficient support to warrant the inscription of the MSB into Colombia’s presidential elections in 2010.
According to Ramirez, the controversial socialist candidate could be committing a breach of the regulations for the Colombian presidential electoral campaigns and his intentions should be investigated, reported newspaper La Opinion of Monday.
La Opinion stated that Ramirez warned the MSB was seriously influenced by the socialist and expansionist policies of Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez.
“We Colombians do not want an imitation of socialism that destroys freedom of speech and protest, as it is doing in Chavez’s Venezuela,” emphasized Ramirez.
The inquiry was opened on September 29 and will be headed by Judge Adelina Covo de Guerrero who will have three months to examine all the relevent evidence, run tests and decide ultimately whether to launch a formal investigation into the motives of Corredor.