In the midst of a land act for those affected by the construction of the project El Quimbo hydroelectric plantin the department of Huila, the President Gustavo Petro He said that this dam should not have been built, as well as the one in Hydroituango.
“What are they doing with the State and the Colombian people if it is not business, business and shady business, even with the money of the mafia? Well, these are the wrongs that must be undone and now here we are facing one. The Hidroituango dam should never have been built, the El Quimbo dam should never have been built, that is the reality.“, said the president.
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The head of state also assured that It was preferable that the Antioquian hydroelectric plant be built in La Guajirablaming the centralism in the country for this not being possible.
“Of course, regionalism comes into play here, because the same space that Hidroituango uses could have been built in La Guajira, making the Wayúu indigenous people partners, not over the Wayúu indigenous people, and it would produce the same energy, there would be no seismic risk for the peasants who live down there and the populations, and it would be in La Guajira, but sometimes it is not worth it to be in La Guajira, but to be in Antioquia and to be in Bogotá. And that is a national evil called centralism.“, the president said.
(Besides: Bogotá to resume daily water rationing: when will the measure begin to apply?).
Gustavo Petro.
The response of the mayor of Medellin
Amid criticism from the head of state, the Mayor of Medellin, Federico Gutierreztold the president that he was wrong in what he said about the hydroelectric project.
“How wrong you are, President Petro. If Hidroituango did not exist, Colombia (under your government) would have had rationing 4 months ago in the midst of the El Niño phenomenon. Once Hidroituango is completed in 2027, it will be generating 2,400 MW of energy, which corresponds to 17% of the country’s total energy.“, Gutierrez said.
(Read also: President Petro proposed adjusting the tariff formula: this is what he proposes).
Federico Gutierrez
He also said that the words of the head of state could discourage the construction of hydroelectric plants in Colombia.
“This condemns Colombians to live through dark and hard times of rationing in the coming years. We definitely conceive of two very different models of a country. You are betting on degrowth and we are betting on growth. A country that grows and distributes its wealth well, allows its people to get out of poverty. Colombia cannot abandon its energy sovereignty.“, Gutierrez reaffirmed.
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