Colombia’s inspector general on Wednesday upheld a 12-year public office ban against former Interior Minister Sabas Pretelt de la Vega.
The politician was banned in August from holding public office as a sanction for his part in the “Yidispolitica” scandal, in which he was accused of bribing Congress members including Yidis Medina to support the 2006 re-election of then-President Alvaro Uribe.
Inspector General Alejando Ordoñez reviewed the case following an appeal made by Pretelt de la Vega, who maintains his innocence
Pretelt de la Vega previously served as ambassador to Rome, but offered his resignation in May after the prosecutor general opened a criminal investigation into the bribery scandal.