Gutiérrez, whom his followers call ‘Fico’, will face six other candidates on Sunday, among which the leftist stands out. Gustavo Petro and the independent Rodolfo Hernandez to define the replacement of the president Ivan Duke.
The candidate of the Equipo por Colombia coalition appears second in the polls behind Petro, and this time has the support of traditional parties such as the Conservative and the Liberalwho are concerned about an eventual triumph of the left in a country historically governed by right-wing or center-right leaders.
Although he is new to national politics, Federico Gutiérrez defines himself as an ordinary citizen, a middle-class man, and a leader who sees politics as a vocation aimed at serving people and improving their quality of life.
Gutiérrez and his followers consider Gustavo Petro a potential threat to democracy, which is why his left-wing rival accuses him of representing the continuity of the current government and of having the covert support of former President Álvaro Uribe, cataloged by some as the most power of Colombian politics.
To make a difference, the candidate assures that he voted in favor of a peace agreement with the guerrillas of the FARCwhich was opposed by Duque and Uribe.
“I want to work for Colombia with a public management model based on citizen trust, seeking peace of mind for all families and leading the country from the regions with order and opportunities,” he said in early April at the presentation of his government program. in Bogota.
Between 2004 and 2011, he was a councilor for Medellín for two consecutive periods and also worked as an urban security consultant for the Ministry of Security and Justice of the city of Buenos Aires, and for the municipality of Celaya, in Mexico.
Casual dress and attachment to the family
The candidate, who usually dresses casually in jeans, sneakers and shirts without a tie, says he ruled his hometown from the streets, confronting criminal structures and even personally knocking on the doors of young people who had dropped out of school to convince them to return. to the classrooms.
His government program focuses on four pillars: The fight against corruption, the strengthening of security, economic growth to generate employment, and the reduction of poverty and inequality.
Friend of the free market, businessmen, mining and hydrocarbon extraction with respect for the environment, Federico Gutiérrez announced that he will seek to make the fourth largest economy in the Americas grow at 5% per year to guarantee the resources to improve education , health, housing, as well as reducing poverty and social inequality.
People close to him define him as a simple and uncomplicated man who from the Medellín mayor’s office faced corruption, while making a high social investment in education, employment and entrepreneurship.
Married and father of two children aged 11 and 13, he said that one of his priorities will be to restore security in the cities and rural areas where the guerrillas of the National Liberation Army, the FARC dissidents that rejected a peace and criminal gangs face each other for territorial control of key areas for drug trafficking.
“The helicopters of the Army and the Police will arrive in the territories and behind those troops the social programs of the State will also arrive,” he assured before a crowd at a campaign event, insisting that his government will have a social emphasis to combat poverty and inequalities.
Unlike Gustavo Petro, his main rival, Gutiérrez would have a better chance of getting his proposals and government program approved in a Congress in which the center-right and right-wing parties could form a solid coalition, according to analysts.
“Colombia does need a change, but it can’t be a change for the worse,” the politician, who enjoys eating hamburgers, pasta and rice, as well as listening to vallenata music -an indigenous rhythm from the north coast of Colombia with an accordion- told Reuters recently. , while doing sports.
Source: Ambito
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