The retired general Juvenal Díaz, governor of Santander, spoke with De de in the framework of the analysis he did with the governor of Meta, Rafaela Cortés, at the meeting of governors with President Gustavo Petro, in Villa de Leyva, Boyacá.
“The Magdalena Medio is a polvorín that is waiting for a phosphorus so that this is something similar to the catatumbo. Barrancabermeja is with the ELN, the Gulf clan fighting, killing people every day. Yesterday there were two murders. Even a journalist placed a trill to the president saying: ‘See, listen to us, here you took 70 % of the votes, come here.’ We have Yondó, Antioquia, where the Gulf and the ELN clan is about to start a confrontation, ”explained the governor of Santander.
“We have southern Bolívar, where the Eln is; We have the north of Puerto Wilches, Santander, where are the Gulf clan and some dissidents of the FARC that want to put together groups and come to dispute the territory to these bandits. This so far have not been able to consummate it, but At the time a struggle for the control of the territory is presented, we will have a lot of deaths And some displacements that will reach Barrancabermeja, ”added the retired Juvenal Díaz.
“Today we had the regional local, the measures were taken for Norte de Santander, for the Catatumbo, which I applaud them to expedite the use of resources. But I also told government delegates, the Ministry of Finance, DNP royalties (National Planning Department), ‘we act before’ at Magdalena Medio. Why don’t we go there with all institutions, with the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education and take the measures? They are taking them when serious problems occur, such as silver, cauca.
“I remember a very anecdotal thing that confesses that I liked it. When the president has just possessed, he goes to Chocó, I was commander of the division and exposed all the problems of the department, because my security concept has always been multidimensional. And the president said one thing I said, ‘that’s what you have to do’. He said: ‘The Security Councils from now on will be not only with the Ministry of Defense, with health, with the education, with housing for the elderly.’ Spectacular, that’s what we need, but they haven’t done so. Us We are asking for that for Magdalena Medio because we can have a very serious situation. ”
See the statements of the retired general Juvenal Díaz, governor of Santander:
Cúcuta
The bordering region is the target of violence since mid -January by an onslaught of the guerrillas for drug trafficking control, which leaves more than 60 dead, 50,000 displaced and terror in the residents. “I allow myself to inform all the cucuteños that there will be a touch of curb in the city from 7 pm today and until 6 am on February 21,” Mayor Jorge Acevedo wrote on the social network X. He also announced that classes were suspended in schools for Friday, February 21.
On Wednesday night, Cúcuta and his neighbor Villa del Rosario were attacked by the National Liberation Army (ELN). The guerrillas exploded a car bomb in a toll and detonated explosives in three police centers.
The recent attack in the two main cities of the Border Department of Norte de Santander They leave six injured, according to official figures. The region suffers the scourge of criminal groups, such as the ELN, which are financed with drug trafficking, illegal mining and extortion.
Without total peace
The Secretary of Security of Norte de Santander, George Quintero, described the attacks as “terrorist” actions. In Cúcuta, a police post had several holes in its infrastructure caused by firearms.
The local police commander, General William Quintero, said that the ELN perpetrated those attacks in commemoration of the death of Domingo Laín Sáenz, a Spanish priest and guerrilla who died in combat on February 20, 1974.
Norte de Santander is one of the departments with the greatest presence of the ELN due to its strategic location for cocaine traffic. Before Eln’s attack in the Catatumbo, President Gustavo Petro suspended the peace dialogues they had started in 2024.
Analysts point out that Security has deteriorated significantly in the country in the midst of the agent’s peace policy, which reduced the offensive actions of the public force against armed groups. The Minister of Defense who accompanied him since his arrival in power in 2022, Iván Velásquez, resigned a few days ago after a request for protocol resignation of Petro for his entire cabinet.
On Wednesday, February 19, the President appointed in his place to the General of the Pedro Sánchez Air Force. The military announced that he will retire from the Armed Forces to assume the position. Sanchez has The mission of stopping the violence that is intensified in the country and does not cease in more than half a century.
Petro defends his total peace policy with which he intends to dismantle illegal groups through dialogue. The opposition notes that criminals are actually strengthening while state forces are paralyzed.
