In the midst of complaints about last-minute appointments in diplomatic missions and the juicy transfer bonuses, which would prevent these appointments from being reversed, A piece of information has just been added that officials from the Foreign Ministry itself are asking to verify.
EL TIEMPO established for the first time that in the midst of the merger with the government of Abelardo De La Espriella, questions are being asked about the effects that the outgoing minister of foreign affairs would have, Rosa Villavicencio, and another high-level official of the entity, appear on a list of members of a union in that portfolio.
READ ALSO
With paid union leave
The resolution of the Chancellery for union leave. Photo:Private file
EL TIEMPO had access to a complaint that was sent to the splice committee, in which they also warned about an alleged co-administration of one of the unions and the granting of perks.
This newspaper investigated and established that the complaint refers to a resolution -03802 of last March 19-in which the Foreign Ministry granted paid union leave to members of the Employees Union of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Semrex) to attend a general assembly of the organization scheduled for March 27, which would last throughout the working day until 5 in the afternoon.
In the list of internal officials of the Foreign Ministry affiliated with the union body, in fact the names of Chancellor Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio and Elvira de las Mercedes Sanabria Salazar appear. The latter, general secretary of the Foreign Ministry, was provisionally appointed, on June 26, as First Secretary of Foreign Affairs, a position assigned to the Colombian Consulate in Nueva Loja (Ecuador).
READ ALSO
The official response
In the resolution, Chancellor Villavicencio and Sanabria appear as affiliates of SEMREX. Photo:Private file
At the Foreign Ministry they stated that the union was the one called to respond. EL TIEMPO then contacted Francisco Burchardt Melo, president of Semrex and general secretary of the General Confederation of Labor (CGT), to ask him if, as the complainants point out, the union membership of Chancellor Villavicencio and of former Secretary Sanabria would have some effect on her departure from office after the De La Espriella government took office.
“No person in management positions or who are operators or expenditure organizers can have union immunity, not even if they have subordinates. This is true both in companies and in entities. Neither of them has union immunity“, Burchardt explained.
And he added: “Chancellor Villavicencio joined a year and a half ago, before she took office as minister. At that time I was coordinator of Colombia Nos Une.”
This is an internal working group of the Foreign Ministry that seeks to establish the conditions so that nationals who wish to migrate do so in a voluntary and orderly manner.
“When the minister joined I“and I asked if he was aware that our union has a critical stance towards the government”Burchardt told EL TIEMPO.
And about Sanabria Salazar She assured that she joined since last December and that both she and the chancellor would not have any restrictions on leaving their positions with the change of Government.
READ ALSO
Demanded appointments?
Francisco Burchardt, president of the Employees Union of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Photo:Private file
“The appointment of Sanabria could even be sued and if there is a judge who determines that he did not meet the requirements, would have to leave and his union membership would have no effect,” Burchardt assured.
READ ALSO
And he added: “It is not an irregularity that affiliated people have these types of positions. There are even affiliated ambassadors and coordinators from different areas, that is completely normal.”
Burchardt concluded by explaining that he attributes the complaints and accusations to union persecution and that the accusations of co-administration between the union and the Chancellery are completely false.
“We are neither the opposition nor the applause committee,” he emphasized.
The new government has not yet proposed reversing the latest appointments. In any case, some of those appointed told EL TIEMPO that if they return them before they turn one year old, it would be a million-dollar asset detriment due to the transfer premium that they have already been paid and that they must disburse from the treasury for them to return.
INVESTIGATIVE UNIT
u.investigativa@eltiempo.com
@UinvestigativaET
Follow us now on Facebook
