Millionaire’s book from Constitutional Court condemns Enrique Peñalosa

This Friday, the Plenary Chamber of the Constitutional Court overturned a judgment of the Council of State issued in 2018 against the former mayor of Bogotá Enrique Peñalosa. The conviction came after this court ruled that the politician had ignored the rules of the administrative career regime by declaring the Undersecretary of Finance, Clara Esperanza Salazar, unfounded in 1998.

However, in a review of the case, which reached the court for a guardianship established by Peñalosa, it was determined that the former mayor “He was diligent insofar as his decision was based on a concept issued by the Direction of the Administrative Department of the District Civil Service”, he is therefore free from conviction.

“Revoke the judgments of February 27, 2020 and May 7 of the same year, rendered by the fifth and fourth sections of the Council of State, respectively in first and second instance, by which the supervisory action was refused promoted by Enrique Peñalosa Londoño against subsection B of the third section of the Council of State, for the reasons set out in this provision “, ordered the Constitutional Court.

It all started with resolution 795 of September 18, 1998, when Enrique Peñalosa Londoño and Carlos Alberto Sandoval Reyes, as mayor and secretary of the Treasury, respectively, said Clara Esperanza Salazar Arango, who worked as Deputy Director of the Treasury, non-existent, as it was, in her opinion, a post of free appointment and dismissal, according to the concept emitted by the Administrative Council District Civil Service Department on September 4, 1998.

Salazar Arango filed a complaint for annulment and restoration of the right, claiming that he had administrative career rights, according to the concept of the National Civil Service Commission, which indicated that said post “Do not escape the career regime”. On September 14, 2000, the Cundinamarca Administrative Court ordered the reinstatement of the former employee and ordered the entity to pay the salaries and benefits she ceased to receive.

The previous decision was confirmed in the second instance by section A of the second section of the Council of State on 22 May 2003. However, it ordered the deduction of the sums received for the exercise of other official functions during the time it was held. was retired from service. When the appeal lodged by the applicant was resolved, the plenary chamber of the same corporation ordered the district to pay these discounts. On September 25, 2008, the district administration ordered the payment of the expected money.

On December 15, 2004, the Capital District initiated rehearsal action against Enrique Peñalosa Londoño and Carlos Alberto Sandoval Reyes. The Cundinamarca Administrative Court, Third Section, Subsection B, in a judgment of May 19, 2010, dismissed the claims. Section B of the third section of the Council of State, in a judgment of August 27, 2018, repealed the previous decision and decided to release Carlos Alberto Sandoval Reyes from his responsibility and to declare Peñalosa Londoño financially responsible., as gross negligence and order him to pay the district the sum of $ 595,357,778.82.

It was then that Peñalosa filed an action for guardianship against the judgment of August 27, 2018. He considered that it incurred a direct violation of articles 29 and 229 of the Political Constitution since it was rendered by a magistrate and a co-judge; and for the direct violation of article 90 of the Constitution and that the judicial authority did not take into account the fact that the action of the plaintiff was diligent insofar as his decision was based on a concept made by the Directorate of the Administrative Department of the District Civil Service. Finally, the Court ruled in favor of Peñalosa.

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