Laura Sarabia made another public appearance and went to the Congress of the Republic to lead a political control debate in the Seventh Commission of the House of Representatives on the implementation of the budget in various sectors.
In his remarks, Sarabia defended President Gustavo Petro’s proposal to “pay for not killing”, pointing out that in this sense the “Youth in Peace” program is a priority for the government and that despite criticism This will be carried out in all areas because this will keep young people away from violence. “Its aim is to create alternatives for young people who find themselves in vulnerable circumstances in departments where the state has not arrived, but violence and actors outside the law have arrived.”
He replied to the opposition: “It is not a program so that young people do not kill, it is a program so that they have other life options. If these alternatives are not created for young people, we will not be able to free them from violence.”
He acknowledged that the public order situation in Colombia is quite delicate, which is why this program, which will cost 1.2 billion pesos annually, must be implemented. “There are areas where unfortunately the only authority is the armed groups, and so for many of these young people the only alternative is to continue to engage in violence and crime.”
He invited members of Congress to travel to regions of the country where violence has plagued the areas. “I would invite the commission to travel to Buenaventura so that we can meet with people from Los Chotas and Espartanos who are involved in gang activity in this city and so that we can talk to them and really find out why this program is necessary . “This program is not a whim of a government or a president, but a reaction to reality.”
The opposition questioned Sarabia about a possible definition of the budget and wondered where the funds would come from to pay this million per month to the young people who murder Colombians in different regions of the country.
Program for the Wayuu
The director of the Ministry of Social Welfare announced that due to the economic and social emergency decreed in the department of La Guajira, the “Wayuu income” will be delivered, consisting of a transfer of 500,000 pesos.
“We will distribute these resources to 27,000 families in the region, families who are mothers and head households with early childhood children. This program is a one-time transfer. The idea is that this Wayuu income will be transferred to citizen income so that these families will not be left unprotected after the government’s comprehensive intervention is completed,” Sarabia explained.
