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Gustavo Petro’s government does not stop heading towards the socialist abyss. This week the normalization of relations between the Petro Government and the dictatorial regime of Nicolás Maduro made the news. On Wednesday, Colombia’s new ambassador traveled to Caracas to present his credentials. Vanessa Vallejo, our co-editor in chief, talks about this topic in Sinceramente, with economist Luis Guillermo Vélez.
Vallejo explained that “Colombia’s ambassador in Venezuela is an old wolf in Colombian politics.” He referred to Armando Benedetti’s visit to Venezuela, where he met with the main leaders of the regime.
The co-editor in chief of El American assured that citizens are underestimating the relationship between Colombia and Venezuela. “What is coming is a criminal association,” she maintained.
Socialism in Colombia
Vallejo and Luis Guillermo Vélez agreed that Petro was also moving in a socialist economic direction and warned that private property would be at risk. They commented on Petro’s statements in which he hints at the possibility of initiating expropriations in Colombia.
“They are acting in order to put an end to freedoms and market economy […] they intend to impose a model of parasitic socialism […] We are into the big one, and the tax reform is to impoverish the middle class because it is the one that hinders them the most,” indicated Vélez.
Vélez said that he does not understand how some analysts and journalists still say that we have to wait to see what will happen in Colombia. In his opinion, Petro has already demonstrated what his strategy is. Similarly, he recalled that the Venezuelan economic situation affected trade relations between Colombia and Venezuela, not Colombia’s decisions.
The economist stated that right now investments in Colombia are paralyzed by the latest decisions of the Petro Government: “There is a kind of silent resistance. The growth predictions for next year are very bad. These people took a growing economy and they are going to leave it exhausted. I see double-digit inflation next year.”
Regarding the situation, Vanessa Vallejo highlighted that Colombians would react as their properties were threatened. “The natural thing in human beings is to defend their property […] if these invasions become systematic, the reactions will be too,” she insisted.
Here you can listen to the complete program, and don’t forget to follow El American’s social media to stay updated on the most important issues happening right now.
Williams Perdomo es periodista y escritor, especializado en las fuentes Política y Cultura.