I cannot let the largest concentration of national institutions in the Department of Magdalena go unnoticed, after President Petro’s visit to Santa Marta, as was the decentralized session of the Fourth Commission of the Senate of the Republic, on the 14th of June in the municipality of Salamina, called to be the new capital of the Río del Magdalena subregion.
The Fourth Commission of the Senate is responsible for legislating and carrying out political control over the budget; financial fiscal control system; alienation and destination of national assets; regulation of the industrial property, patents and trademarks regime; creation, suppression, reform or organization of national public establishments; quality and price control and administrative contracting. In Parish language, it is the commission that debates and controls the money. It is one of the most desired by senators, since from here many opportunities are generated for the management of resources for the regions.
It is made up of 15 senators, including Aída Avella of the UP Party, John Besaile of the U, Angélica Lozano Correa of the Green Party, Carlos Meisel of the Democratic Center, Carlos Mario Farelo of Cambio Radical and Claudia Pérez Giraldo of the Liberal Party, who was the manager of this session in the municipality of Salamina, a gesture that clears up doubts about Mayor Pabón’s closeness to Casa Pulgar.
The transcendental and historic event was attended by the mayors or their delegates from the entire Department, to find a dynamic of reduced participation, where one mayor per subregion would take the floor to express to the Commission and the government entities the needs and problems of the territory that represent. Until then, one would say, well, not everyone can speak. But the most disappointing thing is that the national government entities, with the sole participation of the Vice Minister of Sports and the rest of the delegates, came to read and explain what they have done and are doing in the department.
One, the attendees, the mayors, expected more, they hoped to save one or two trips to Bogotá, but nothing.
The session ended, and the mayors and delegates returned to their municipalities with the same things they took with them: hope and illusions. The decentralized session was a salute to the flag, a demonstration of strength and political power, since it was Senator Pérez who assumed the commitment to work for this region and the Magdalena, since not all the member senators were included, not even much less with the governor of Magdalena.
We continue to be a disconnected department, the Government does not articulate or guide investment in the national order, the mayors remain prisoners of the march of the congressmen, some rebels who venture to manage autonomously, but they are few.
Let’s hope that the investment of 500 billion from the MinDeporte materializes, as announced by Vice Minister Manuel Palacios, and that the more than 16 thousand hectares of land are delivered in the next three months, as announced by Patricia Caicedo on behalf of the National Agency of Lands in Magdalena. I hope that things go well for Salamina with this relationship between the mayor and Casa Pulgar, I hope things go well for everyone. In the end, these days, having hope is an act of rebellion.
PS: Decentralized sessions as such do not exist; What happened in Salamina was a public hearing convened by the Fourth Commission, similar to those held by the Seventh Commission for Health Reform, and those held by the Assembly; Due to the above, the attendance of all senators is not mandatory.
By: Pedro David Tobias | @PedroDavidTM
