By Luis Jaime Acosta and Carlos Vargas
BOGOTA (Reuters) – Two out of nine magistrates in Colombia’s National Electoral Council (CNE) have requested an investigation be opened into Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s 2022 campaign over alleged spending violations, two sources said on Wednesday.
Magistrates Benjamin Ortiz and Alvaro Hernan Prada also requested an investigation into Ecopetrol chief executive Ricardo Roa, who served as Petro’s campaign manager.
The scandal is the latest to envelope Petro’s government after former officials from the country’s disaster response agency this week offered to cooperate with prosecutors over alleged corruption involving procurement of water tankers.
Ecopetrol, the country’s majority state-owned energy company said it had no comments on news of the investigation, which was originally reported in local newspaper El Tiempo.
Colombia’s president’s office did not comment but Justice Minister Nestor Osuna said the government would abide by the final decision of the CNE to either advance the investigation or shelve it.
(Reporting by Luis Jaime Acosta and Carlos Vargas; Writing by Oliver Griffin; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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