The candidate for the presidency of Colombia Rodolfo Hernández. LUISA GONZALEZ (REUTERS)
The proposals of the right-wing populist candidate, a tsunami in the final stretch of the first round of elections, are a question mark, beyond his continuous promise to end corruption.
These are his main electoral proposals.
Taxes
It proposes the creation of a Territorial Tax Statute to increase the base of territorial tax revenues, “without implying new tax reforms”.
“As long as politicians keep stealing, why tax reform?” he said.
In a gaseous way, he affirms that he would only redistribute sources and improve collections "where avoidance and evasion prevail."
peace agreement
The candidate has said that he will continue the implementation of the process with the FARC, although he voted No in the plebiscite for peace in 2016. In his government program he assures that he would open a "process of rapprochement with the ELN without establishing negotiating tables", only adding an 'other' to the agreement with the FARC, as if the stories of these guerrillas were similar.
Venezuela
It would restore commercial relations from the first day of government.
In international relations he proposes to eliminate seven embassies and some consulates.
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Education
He promises that he will dedicate the highest budget of the Government to education;
it will reform the form of admission to public universities and will progressively forgive student debts with Icetex, specifically for students from strata 1 and 2 and those with the best academic averages.
Additionally, it would deliver subsidies of 20 thousand pesos a day to those who live more than 50 km from the universities, to reduce desertion.
drugs
He supports the legalization of medical cannabis, assures that he will carry out a census of addicts to hallucinogenic substances and will create care centers for addicts.
But he has no proposal on how he would confront the drug cartels.
pensions
It states that, by law, "it will grant a pension to all older adults, regardless of whether or not they have met the requirements," in the form of a basic income.
Although he has not explained where he would finance that proposal.
He also affirms that he will review the implementation of "a tax burden on privileged pensioners", and that he would reform Colpensiones (a public entity) to allow it to compete with private funds in generating investments.
Health
Rodolfo Hernández proposes a "preventive approach to health" and to design a price control model throughout the health provision chain through what he calls the Unit Price Analysis System;
stimulate the national drug industry and continue to control prices for pharmaceutical companies.
Environment
In a debate, the candidate acknowledged that he does not know what the Escazú Agreement is, although in his government program he assures that he will ratify it along with other international environmental protection treaties.
On fracking he has changed his position several times: he first said that he did support it in a controlled way.
Then, that he did not support either fracking or spraying with glyphosate.
Poverty
It would create a Basic Income of 1 million pesos that concentrates in a single family payment all the existing subsidies in the country and eliminate all the entities that mediate.
Instead, the payment would be made through a zero-cost card from Banco Agrario.
It is not clear where he would finance it from and he does not give any figure to support that proposal.
Corruption
His main proposal is to create a "virtual anti-corruption institute" to return the stolen money to Colombians and encourage citizen oversight to whom he would pay a reward for what they denounce.
"The idea is to reward citizen complaints with up to 20% of what is recovered."
It would eliminate the use of the presidential plane and lower the salary of congressmen's advisers.
On the other hand, he wants to "make visible" corrupt officials "through exercises of moral magistracy."
The document does not explain or go into detail on that last point.
Employment
It does not present figures or concrete goals, only something that sounds obvious: that it is necessary to design a policy of incentives and investment in the countryside "so that there is development" AND that it will promote "the self-construction of integral villages and tertiary roads by the rural population".
Gender
He assures that he will eliminate the High Council for Women's Equity.
She once referred to Venezuelan women as child factories and has changed her position several times regarding the decriminalization of abortion.
But in her program she states that at least 50% of the positions within the public administration "will be assigned to women with equal pay", and develop strategies for labor flexibility (teleworking, continuous shift) that allow the work of the female head of household.
She will develop a program in which the State, together with private companies, build spaces for the care of the children of the workers.
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