Colombian Finance Minister Ricardo Bonilla stepped down on Wednesday at the request of President Gustavo Petro following allegations of his involvement in a major corruption scandal.
Bonilla was accused last week by a former advisor of being aware of bribes offered to lawmakers to secure support for key reforms championed by President Petro. The country’s attorney general’s office claims the bribes were funded with $200,000 allegedly siphoned from public funds.
President Petro announced Bonilla’s resignation during a press conference, clarifying that the decision was not an admission of guilt but a response to protect the minister. “I asked for his resignation not because I believe he is guilty, but because they want to destroy him for his loyalty to me,” Petro said.
Bonilla’s deputy, Diego Guevara, has been named as his replacement.
The scandal has cast a shadow over Petro’s administration, implicating several high-ranking officials and members of parliament from both the ruling party and the opposition.
In July 2024, the country’s intelligence chief, a close ally of Petro, resigned after being accused of orchestrating bribes to parliamentary leaders to expedite the passage of legislative reforms.
President Petro, who assumed office in 2022, campaigned on a platform of ambitious social reforms aimed at addressing inequality and systemic issues in Colombia. The corruption allegations have since posed significant challenges to his reform agenda.
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