ANDhe ARC Golfo de Morrosquillo set sail at dusk last Monday, leaving behind the bustle of Cartagena.
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The ship of the National Navy He left the Bay of Cartagena behind, and in his wake rose a murmur of expectations, promises and hope. For 21 days you will tour the Magdalena River, visiting eight municipalities in the department of Bolívar.
The last rays said goodbye to the Heroic City and bathed the waters of the Canal del Dique and Magdalena with golden tones.
The journey ‘Sailing to the Heart of Magdalena: I fall in love with Bolívar’ It is not a simple expedition. It is an ambitious collective dream that today comes to life and is aimed at reaching the remote corners of the department of Bolívar.
ARC Golfo de Morrosquillo set sail from Cartagena de Indias
Photo:The national army
This is the ninth time that the National Navy undertakes a trip of this nature, but this year it has a special nuance: the Government of Bolívar and the Ministry of Justice joined this effort to provide social services and programs aimed at changing lives in areas apart from geography.
The Governor of Boívar, Yamil Arana Padauí, accompanied by the Vice Minister of Promotion of Justice, Jhoana Alexandra Delgado Gaitán, and the Major of the Marine Corps, Freddy Anderson Cortés Otálora, said goodbye to the ship with words that resonated like a prayer: ““We are one territory.”
The ARC Golfo de Morrosquillo carries on board the aspirations of a people who have been waiting for years for the presence of the State in villages and townships.
The men and women of the National Navy and other government officials on board are heralds of a better future.
In their hands they carry tools of justice, health, education and development, all under the emblem of ‘Justo Bolívar’, a program of the Ministry of the Interior designed to bring justice to every corner of the department.
Fishing canoes in front of Sopaviento
Photo:John Montaño / EL TIEMPO
“We want the social justice that is talked about so much to reach where it has never gone before,” said Governor Yamil Arana.
His words are a commitment: a solemn promise that no corner of Bolívar should be forgotten.
In each port, at each stop, the expedition promises to leave a trace of hope, challenging the apathy and forgetfulness that had marked the history of deep Bolivar for so long.
The ship will sail through the waters of the Magdalena, touching land in eight municipalities: Calamar, Cicuco, Magangué – Coyongal, El Peñón, Regidor, San Martín de Loba, San Pablo and Soplaviento.
There they promise to serve more than 10 thousand people, who will benefit from institutional offers: workshops, health days, road safety campaigns, cosmetology, nursing and assistance services are some of the scheduled activities.
Magdalena river
Photo:Private file
Each stop promises a festival of opportunities, a reminder that the State must be there for its people.
Among the partners of this company are Colgate, the Unidos Foundation, Mutualser, and many other organizations that had joined forces to make this dream possible. The Free University, the University of Sinú, the Rafael Núñez University and the Comfenalco Technological University Corporation, among other academic institutions, joined the effort, providing knowledge and human resources for the development of the community.
The first stop took place in the last few hours in the municipality of Calamar, where the mouth of the Canal del Dique receives the waters of the Magdalena River.
There, the inhabitants, accustomed to the coming and going of the river and the passage of time without significant changes, received the arrival of the ARC Golfo de Morrosquillo.
Children, eyes full of curiosity, crowded around officials who distributed brochures and explained the services available.
The mothers, with faces marked by the sun and daily worries, listened attentively to the talks about health and nutrition, while the elderly watched from a distance, remembering times when the river was their sustenance.
The people of Calamar went from initial disbelief to enthusiastic participation.
The port of Calamar is one of the 21 that the ARC Golfo de Morrosquillo will dock
Photo:Courtesy ProColombia
‘Sailing to the Heart of Magdalena: I fall in love with Bolívar’ is not just an expedition, but a love song to a land rich in history and culture, a promise that, despite the challenges, Bolívar must continue sailing towards peace with social investment.
During the next 21 days there will be more health days with lines of people waiting to be treated; more workshops and training to improve the quality of life of these communities harassed, in addition, by poverty and a war between illegal armed actors, which does not belong to them.
John Montano
EL TIEMPO correspondent
Cartagena
In X: @PilotodeCometas
