Colombia’s president-elect says there are no miracles, will tackle graft
BOGOTA, (Reuters) - Colombian President-elect Ivan Duque yesterday admitted he faces great challenges when he takes office next month and said while he is not a miracle worker, he will do all he can to push the nation forward and reduce the gulf between rich and poor.
Duque, a right-winger who will replace President Juan Manuel Santos on Aug. 7, received accreditation from Colombia’s electoral council confirming him as the legitimate winner of last month’s election.
Standing alongside his vice president, Marta Lucia Ramirez, Duque said he would strengthen security in the nation, protect community leaders threatened by crime gangs, reduce cultivation of illicit crops and bolster the economy.
“We will not be inferior to the challenge that history gives us, we will not be inferior to the motivation that we have to work intensely,” Duque said during the ceremony as family and colleagues cheered.
“Here there will be no miracles, there will be hard work and if we unite Colombia around these common goals, we will turn them into the greatest opportunity in our history.”
Duque, 41, a business-friendly protégé of hard-line former President Alvaro Uribe, said he would present a series of anti-corruption policy measures to congress on the day he is sworn in to office.