“The great politics is measured by liters of water, by kilometers of road, by health coverage, by opportunities for the most vulnerable, and by the presence of the State in all territories.” Abelardo de la Espriella’s words sought to reaffirm the radical shift from his predecessor, who allowed the unchecked growth of criminal gangs, did not add a single kilometer to the country’s poor road infrastructure, nor remedied the precariousness of basic public services in thousands of communities, in addition to devastating the health system.
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These are some of the changes that the new president will implement from the start of his term, taking office tonight, a newcomer to politics, with right-wing beliefs, who trusts in making the “miracle homeland” he promised Colombians a reality. Because miracles are what he will need to quickly straighten the course of the nation he inherits, burdened with enormous bureaucracy, record-breaking debt, and insecurity, both in rural areas and cities, that overwhelms Colombians.
For that reason, he decided to deliver his first speech as head of state at the Pichincha Battalion in Cali and will swear in his cabinet before the military, who have placed their hopes in the Minister of Defense, General Fernando Mora, one of the officers dismissed by Petro. They were removed for ideological reasons or for expressing truths that clashed with his statements.
His role and that of the new director of the National Police, Alejandro Barrera, also reinstated, will be key to restoring the strength of the Army and the intelligence of the military and police forces, essential to combat illegal armed groups and urban gangs.
“We will restore order, strengthen authority, and return tranquility to every corner of Colombia,” De la Espriella said at a meeting with mayors and governors. In nine cities, they will create “urban security blocks,” made up of police officers from different specialties, focused on combating extortion, theft, and homicides.
The close relationship with local power will be another turnaround from what happened under Petro, who punished certain regions and localities for political reasons, such as Antioquia, a Uribista stronghold. De la Espriella, however, announced that he will not only strengthen relations with everyone and finance the projects that petrismo left unfinished, but will govern from the provinces.
Besides the symbolism of being the first president to take office away from Bogotá, he has established the coastal Barranquilla as the main alternate seat of government, while Cali and Medellín will be the other two alternatives to the capital of the Republic. He has committed to working each week in a different department, starting with La Guajira, as a way to get closer to the diverse problems of a country twice the size of Spain, crossed by three Andean mountain ranges, with the Amazon jungles representing 42% of its territory.
Precisely that intricate geography is one of the causes, along with corruption, that hinder the fight against guerrillas and other criminal gangs, as well as eradicating coca crops, drug trafficking, and illegal mining. “It seems like a geography designed by the devil to hide bandits,” an army general told this newspaper when pursuing FARC leaders.
“Destabilizing democracy”
De la Espriella also aims to improve relations with the judiciary, the media, and the opposition, all harassed from podiums and social networks by the outgoing president.
“My commitment to democratic freedom includes those who think differently from me,” he said in one of his speeches, adding that Iván Cepeda “will have all the guarantees to exercise the opposition”.
But the mentioned senator and his far-left Historic Pact decided not to recognize him as president, something no loser has ever done, and to call for “civil disobedience”, as well as organizing sit-ins in various localities during the inauguration ceremony.
“Let’s call things by their name and face them as what they are,” De la Espriella responded. “The so-called ‘civil disobedience’ is nothing more than a euphemism to try to destabilize democracy and I will not allow it.” He had already warned that he will not tolerate “any conduct aimed at promoting violence, fear, and disregard for institutions,” which means reinforcing riot police and letting them act whenever demonstrations, as often happens, turn into violent riots.
Regarding the judges, he wanted to symbolize the change of course as soon as he received his credential as president-elect last June. He went to the Palace of Justice, where all the high courts work, and held a meeting with their leaders.
And this Wednesday, taking advantage of the large presence of journalists in Cali, he assured that “I will always defend free expression, I will defend freedom of the press.”
Defender of the family
The new presidential family will mark another vast difference between Gustavo Petro and Abelardo de la Espriella.
The socialist has five children from three marriages and in October 2025 revealed, in a message on X, that he was separated from the first lady, Verónica Alcocer, and had had a girlfriend for some time.
Later it became known that it was Vanessa Cortés, the protagonist of a mysterious nighttime walk through the old town of Panama City, hand in hand with the president, in 2024. The recording went viral and sparked all kinds of speculation about the identity of the companion and the president’s reasons for displaying, on an official trip, an extramarital relationship.
The same happened in February 2026, when he was seen walking on an island, like a tourist, hand in hand with another unknown woman, during a winter emergency.
This week Alcocer, accused of corruption, traveled to Sweden, where she had already spent a long period and left Colombia in a bad light due to her partying excesses, according to the Colombian ambassador in Stockholm. Cortés is also accused of enriching herself by taking advantage of her boyfriend’s power.
Apart from the chief’s love affairs, the eldest son Nicolás is charged with appropriating money of dubious origin.
De la Espriella, for his part, declares himself a firm defender of “freedom, life, and family.” His wife and mother of his four children, Ana Lucía Pineda, 38 years old, studied Business Administration, worked at the De la Espriella Lawyers firm, among other companies, and was very active during the campaign with “Tigresses for the homeland.”
They married in 2008 and since then she has been his inseparable companion and his grounding force. On Friday, he posted on Instagram a photo of an altar dedicated to the Virgin, to whom he is very devoted, with the phrase “in your hands and under your mantle.”
