“To accept this great challenge that a friend has invited me”, Rodrigo Lara, Federico Gutiérrez's vice-presidential formula

The former mayor of Neiva, Rodrigo Lara Sánchez, in a dialogue with the radio station La W, spoke about his surprising entry into the Team by Colombia, being the vice-presidential formula of Federico Gutiérrez. About this, Lara said: “It is a great responsibility with the country to accept this great challenge that a friend has invited me and that I have to be clear, it is a friend with whom I share this enthusiasm. It is the opportunity for us to leave that stage of hatred and resentment and achieve progress to what unites us.”

Rodrigo Lara, who has been an active member of the Green Party, is pointed out to be participating in an electoral move to add more votes to the Gutiérrez campaign, due to his apparent ideological differences, the former mayor of Neiva said about this: “I recognize my origins, I deeply believe that this country must change, it must continue working because there are many unsolved problems, they are not easy and they are of great complexity and that is where we need people regardless of political color.”

On Federico Gutiérrez, he mentioned: “The president we are going to have in this country is a person of character, with independence, whose only political calculation is the welfare of Colombians and our only political leader is the people of Colombia. There is no chief saying what to do and how to do it, or how to do it, nor is it about how many votes I can add”, although 'Fico' has been seen in meetings with former President Santos and Gaviria to add electoral support in the first round.

Rodrigo Lara Sánchez, also spoke about the relations that the campaign has with Uribism, about this he mentioned: “We must stop stigmatizing because it belongs to 'x' or that we want to imprison it, because it is very good for a political campaign to say that the other belongs to such a group... now of course the doors are open here, because good Colombians belong to one party and another, to the left and the right, above those thoughts we are united by a feeling for this country.”

An invitation to curb stigmatization and polarization in the country, curiously its presidential formula 'Fico' Gutiérrez seems to profess the opposite, since he has made repeated interventions pointing to Petro and the Colombian left, even in a debate not attended by the candidate of the Historical Pact, Gutiérrez released a photo by Gustavo to point him out of being responsible for several national issues.

Lara pointed out the importance of a union to strengthen a country that after two years of pandemic has been severely affected, which is why the most important thing is the articulated work of all sectors, said the vice-presidential formula of Team For Colombia.

On the other hand, a wide variety of reactions has left the vice-president of 'Fico', one of those impressions highlighted the positive effect of Lara's image in the campaign: “A simple and powerful message that of Fico and Rodrigo Lara together: two Colombians who have worked well for their people without fuss or stridences, without useless discussions of left and right, without messianic pretensions, without hatred, with love and commitment for Colombia,” said Enrique Peñalosa.

For her part, Congressman of the Democratic Center Margarita Restrepo said: “The message that Federico Gutiérrez sends when he chose Rodrigo Lara Sánchez, son of the murdered former Minister of Justice Rodrigo Lara Bonilla, as his vice-presidential formula, is very powerful. He will be next to the victims, not next to the perpetrators as Gustavo Petro does.”

But one of the most striking opinions is that of the leader of the New Liberalism, who said that he was “burned” by Lara's decision: “Yes, I am very hot. Not only because I admire Rodrigo Lara's human and intellectual qualities, but above all because I would like him to be with us in the New Liberalism... the one who most celebrates today the announcement of Rodrigo Lara Sánchez as Federico Gutiérrez's vice-presidential formula is undoubtedly Ernesto Macías,” commented Juan Manuel Galán.

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