The president-elect of Colombia, Abelardo de la Espriella, has accused the outgoing president, Gustavo Petro, of promoting a coup attempt and has made a direct appeal to the Armed Forces to safeguard the Constitution and democratic order, while continuing to reject that the results of the second round of elections held on June 21 are questioned.
In his message, De la Espriella insisted that he will not allow maneuvers that, in his opinion, seek to disregard his victory at the polls against the official candidate Iván Cepeda, and reiterated that his priority will be to guarantee the institutional stability of the country.
"I want you to know that I will be a tiger defending Colombia from the coup plotters. Let no one doubt it," he warned, after he had instructed his people to withdraw from the transition process with the current government due to his stance of not recognizing his victory at the polls against the officialist candidate Iván Cepeda.
In a speech broadcast through his social networks, De la Espriella denounced that Petro and Cepeda continue to not recognize his electoral victory and warned that this "peaceful resistance" they have been calling for in recent days "is nothing more than a disguise for the perverse plan they have to cling to power."
The far-right leader maintained that Petro's attitude is due to the "fear" he feels for the "unveiling" of "all the corruption that prevailed in these four dark years of misgovernment" and for the possible judicial consequences that, according to him, will arise, alluding to alleged ties with "narco-terrorism" and with the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro.
For this reason, the president-elect urged the Armed Forces to honor their oath to defend the Constitution and democracy, and also requested the support of the international community until, as he denounces, this coup attempt ceases.
De la Espriella explained that his decision to break the power transition process is due to the fact that, in his opinion, they cannot "be sitting at the table with a band of coup plotters and corrupt individuals who do not recognize the sovereign people at the polls."
"To the Colombian people, resistance (...) We cannot let them snatch away what we achieved in the urns in an epic democratic battle," he appealed, recalling that in just one month he will take office. "An transition cannot be made with a government that disregards the triumph of the incoming government. Petro, his heir, and those who are supporting them in this absurdity, are not democrats," he insisted.
"In a month, those who today hold power will move to occupy the place that all democracy reserves for political minorities: that of the opposition," he said, warning that he will not allow "intimidation, blockades, or violence, even if they try to disguise it with grandiloquent and bombastic names."