The Supreme Court Wednesday published a press release condemning Colombian President Alvaro Uribe’s criticisms of Magistrate Yesid Ramirez, who requested an investigation into allegations that the president’s son, Tomas Uribe, bribed congressmen to ensure his father’s re-election in 2006.
In the press release the court “emphatically rejects and deplores” Uribe’s comments that the judicial body was “destroying justice” and “replacing it with hatred,” by requesting an investigation in allegations against Tomas Uribe.
The Colombian Prosecutor General’s Office announced Tuesday that it will open a formal investigation into the allegations.
Tomas Uribe was allegedly involved in the naming of Luz Marina Ocampo as a notary in Tunja, Boyaca, a town north-east of Bogota.
According to the former superintendent of notaries, Manuel Cuello Baute, more than 30 notaries were assigned on government orders and Tomas Uribe and Casa de Nariño officials were involved in the assignment.
Tomas Uribe testified before the Supreme Court on July 30, 2009 regarding the allegations. Exactly a year later, Supreme Court Magistrate Yesid Ramirez requested a formal investigation into the allegations, leading President Uribe to lash out at the court.
Uribe has often clashed with the judiciary during his presidency. This “train crash” between Colombia’s executive and judicial branches led the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) to examine the court’s dealings, before reporting that it was satisfied with the rulings handed down by the South American judicial body.