Constructores de Hidroituango pronounce themselves before accusations of the Comptroller’s Office

The administration, execution, construction and control errors They have Hidroituango, the energy production project that planned to become the most important in Colombia, under the scrutiny of the control and research entities. For an alleged patrimonial detriment in Hidroituango, the Comptroller’s Office imputed 28 important figures from politics and the business world in Colombia, who will have to answer to the control body and to the country for what the Comptroller itself considers a series of errors.

Given the decision of the Comptroller’s Office, several of the accused have spoken about it, this Friday, it was the turn of the CCC Ituango Consortium to whom the control body holds them responsible for actions that led not only to the delay of the works, but to the defects of these and the cost overruns in the contract.

In the first measure, according to the newspaper El Espectador, the consortium indicated that it respects the decisions of the agency and that, as they have done since the investigation began, they will continue to comply with the legal requirements that are necessary to resolve the process.

On the other hand, they stated that they have “Acted with professionalism and diligence in the face of requests for changes, new activities and larger amounts of work, which impact the work programs and were duly approved. We have adhered to the instructions given by EPM and its delegates, always under the supervision of the Audit Office, complying with our contractual obligations ”.

What the consortium means is that the hydroelectric contract has been under the supervision of those in charge of controlling and intervening to avoid further problems, an argument that goes against the main accusations of the Comptroller’s Office against those involved, since Among the main problems highlighted by the agency is the lack of supervision of both former mayors and former governors, as well as the entities that should be in charge of it.

Read also: The possible errors that led the Comptroller’s Office to put the magnifying glass on Hidroituango

According to CCC Ituango, the municipal Comptroller’s Office, EPM’s internal audit, the Inter-American Development Bank and other entities have been responsible for strictly monitoring the mega-project contract.

For its part, EPM’s board also spoke on Friday about the most recent results of the process that is advancing in the Comptroller’s Office. Like the consortium, the EPM board assured that it respects and abides by the decisions of the control body and other state entities that refer to the scandal over the hydroelectric problems.

The board also made a call to EPM’s general management and administration about “The need to gather and consolidate all the organizational efforts for the successful completion of the Ituango hydroelectric project, in order to enter into operation in the first semester of 2022, the date foreseen for this purpose, since the technical commitments and the spirit for the execution of the project remain intact ”.

They highlighted, according to the newspaper, that the allegations of the Comptroller will not affect “the agreed schedule for the execution and entry into operation of the work”, but they indicated that the efforts to finish the hydroelectric project should focus on compensating the damages suffered by EPM.

To end, the board assured that “Is aware of the economic and social responsibility of EPM, for which it has fostered and supported the administrative decisions aimed at improving the evaluation and mitigation of the risks of the projects that the company executes, as well as the improvement in the quality of public services ”, as quoted by the medium.

Those linked to the process

According to El Espectador, The Comptroller’s Office divided the fiscal responsibilities of the case into four components: the members of the board of directors, the managers of EPM and the hydroelectric plant, the mayors and governors of that time, and the contractors and auditors.

Among the actors with individual responsibilities are Fajardo, Gaviria and Ramos. Is also Alonso salazar, mayor of Medellín between 2008 and 2011, who according to the control body would be related to the decisions that led to the loss of the project’s net worth, since he belonged to the board of directors of Hidroituango, next to him is Juan Esteban Calle Restrepo, legal representative of EPM.

The patrimonial detriment was due to the actions between 2008 and 2015, according to the Comptroller’s Office, which is why the former mayor of Medellín, Federico Gutiérrez, is not part of the accused, since his administration began in 2016.

On the other hand, the consortia that are linked to the process are the CCCI Ituango Consortium, the constructors of the main works to whom the Comptroller’s Office charged actions such as systematic delays, defects in construction and increase in contract values. To the Ituango Fs Tunnel Consortium They also charged him with systematic delays in the diversion works, while the Ingetec-Sedic and Generación Ituango consortiums, They were blamed for lack of compliance with the contract and poor advice, respectively.

MORE ON OTHER TOPICS:

Approved in the Senate bill that reduces the working day in Colombia from 48 to 40 hours a week

The State Council admitted the lawsuit against the election of Margarita Cabello as Attorney General but keeps her in office