Colombian Vice President, Francia Márquez, stated this Monday that there is no “conclusive evidence” that she has links with dissident groups of the FARC, after a journalistic investigation revealed indications that these illegal armed groups allegedly financed the presidential campaign of the current president, Gustavo Petro, through her.
“I categorically reject these malicious versions. There is no reliable evidence to prove my link with these illegal groups. The only thing presented is an alleged WhatsApp message, said by a criminal using my name to give himself importance in front of other criminals,” said Márquez in a statement.
News Caracol’s investigation revealed on Sunday conversations between dissident leaders in which they discuss alleged support from that guerrilla group for Petro’s presidential campaign in 2022, as well as the infiltration of those groups into State security agencies.
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The alleged support for Petro’s campaign was given through the current vice president, indicates a chat between Néstor Gregorio Vera, alias Iván Mordisco, head of the Central General Staff (EMC), the main dissident group of the FARC, and other guerrillas.
“Never in my life have I seen that person. To pretend to turn that into a fact is an irresponsibility and an act of bad faith that seeks to affect my name, my integrity, and my commitment to the Colombian people,” Márquez responded.
On March 20, 2024, Iván Mordisco had already said that the EMC supported Petro’s electoral campaign, after the president said that the head of the dissidents is “a ‘traqueto’ (drug trafficker) dressed as a revolutionary”.
“Gustavo Petro accuses me of being a drug trafficker and of using the memory of Manuel Marulanda (founder of the FARC). When we supported him in the campaign, we were not drug traffickers. In addition to betraying us, he betrayed the people who supported him for his progressive and peace-oriented discourse, today he promotes war and capitalism,” Mordisco then expressed on an X account.
Regarding this, the vice president defended that her campaign “was genuine, transparent and supported by thousands of Colombian women and men who believed in a change”.
“I have never received support from criminals. I have never met with criminals. I will never lend myself to any dark pact. Anyone who claims otherwise must prove it before the law,” added the senior official.
News Caracol’s revelation was made in a broader report that indicates that the FARC dissidents have a high degree of infiltration in the main security institutions of the State, as well as contacts with high-ranking officials of the Army and the National Intelligence Directorate (DNI).
