The referendum needed to allow Colombian President Alvaro Uribe a third
term received another blow in the face. Coalition senators are facing a
second criminal lawsuit over their conduct in Congress.
According to the lawsuit of opposition lawmaker Venus Albeira Silva, the House denied a request by coalition party Partido de la U to dismiss House President German Varon Cotrino the due process, its right for a second instance and violated constitutional and legal norms, when they decided to skip the vote on the request after it already officially had been registered.
If the Court decides to start an investigation into the complaint, the House will be forced to suspend the choosing of Representatives to take part in the commission that has the ultimate vote on the referendum. This process is already stalled, because of another criminal investigation.
Political Uribe supporters already have expressed their fear that the referendum will not find its way through Congress before the legal deadline, because of the first lawsuit. The second lawsuit makes the clouds over the referendum look even gloomier.
Positive news for the Uribistas is that the Supreme Court accepted the complaint of Partido de la U Representative Roy Barreras, who says his opposition colleague German Navas Talero filed a false complaint when the Polo Democratico lawmaker sued his colleagues over the approval of the referendum bill.