After five years of the tragedy, the Attorney General's Office warned of non-compliance in the delivery of works in Mocoa

After five years of the tragedy in Mocoa (Putumayo), several families are still waiting for the construction of their new homes and several students expect the same from their school, works that are 71% complete, as reported by the Attorney General's Office on Thursday.

It should be noted that on the night of March 31, 2017, and for 24 hours, the citizens of the capital of Putumayo were victims of a natural tragedy that left 333 dead and thousands more affected, after the La Taruca and La Tarauquita streams, as well as the Moca, Mulato and Sangoyaco rivers overflowed, and even more the forts rains, will almost completely carry the city ahead.

This Thursday, March 31, 2022, commemorated the fifth anniversary of this tragedy, which left more than 71 people missing and more than 1,000 people affected. According to the control entity, “to date, the inhabitants of this city are still demanding the construction of the houses promised by the National Government in 2017. By July 2021, the promised 909 homes had to be built, but according to the contractor, at a work desk with the Attorney General's Office, they could only deliver 500 ″.

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But of the total number of houses delivered, the inhabitants of the 17 affected neighborhoods claim that at least 100 houses of those built are in uninhabitable condition. “This situation persists despite the request for the implementation of a strategy to reduce arrears, which was agreed at the working table on October 15, 2021,” said the Attorney General's Office.

Another promise of the Colombian State to the population of Mocoa was the construction of a megacolege. On this process, the Public Prosecutor's Office found an advance of 71%, which includes the completion of Stage I corresponding to the construction of classrooms for 960 students. According to the demand of the Attorney General's Office, “this school must be 100% built by July of this year.”

One of the recommendations of the entity, which emerged after its visit to the affected place, is to carry out administrative actions with the Government of Putumayo and the Municipal Mayor's Office of Mocoa, to ensure the resources and conditions for the operation of the educational project, as well as the rest of the works being carried out.

Compared to mitigation work, progress of 46% was evident in the 18 works. The Attorney General's Office reiterated that “it is imperative to meet the significant delay of 21 per cent of planned work”, which is currently being presented in one of the works in the Sangoyaco river sector.

Meanwhile, in the reconstruction of the aqueduct, the percentage of progress reflected 90%, so the Office of the Attorney General appealed to the Ministry of Housing and the Aguas de Mocoa S.A.E.S.P company, to complete the pending activities. Likewise, he asked to prioritize the construction of the Sauces III residential unit, which will have 87 homes. Also the construction of 253 rural homes, the market square, the sandwich of the Palmeras sector and the penitentiary center.

Finally, the Office of the Procurator requested the director of the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management, within five working days, to submit a detailed report on the modifications to the goals proposed in the plan, the strategies envisaged to ensure the continuity of the planned works and the budgetary support for the completion of projects and works that would begin in 2022.

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