Colombia's new president faces deadly earthquake in first week

Less than a week after taking office, Colombia's new president, Abelardo de la Espriella, is confronting the country's worst earthquake in decades. The magnitude 7.4 quake struck on Monday at 07:34 local time near San José del Palmar in the Chocó department, killing hundreds and injuring thousands Source: infobae. The disaster has forced the right-wing president to shift his agenda from security to emergency response, testing his leadership just days into his term Source: emolcl.

Early signals

Before the quake, De la Espriella had already distanced himself from his predecessor, Gustavo Petro. He moved his inauguration from Bogotá to Cali as a symbol of decentralization, and announced he would not use the Casa de Nariño, converting it into a museum and creating alternate presidential offices in Barranquilla, Medellín, and Cali Source: emolcl. He also sparked controversy by recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, a break from Petro's policy Source: emolcl.

The crisis response

The earthquake has exposed contradictions in De la Espriella's decentralization promises. While he vowed to empower regions, his government centralized official information, with the UNGRD instructed to release data only through the presidency Source: infobae. This led to discrepancies: the president reported 181 deaths nationally, while regional authorities counted 240 (130 in Valle del Cauca, 90 in Risaralda, 14 in Chocó, 6 in Caldas) Source: infobae. The transition from Petro's administration has been rocky, with the new team relying on outgoing officials like UNGRD director Javier Pava before his replacement, geologist David Tamayo Roldán, took over Source: infobae.