That is what Gina Parody, an independent candidate for the mayoralty of Bogotá in the 30 October regional elections, said about the other young politicians in the race regarding their relationship with established political parties. Parody believes that in Colombia “there are no parties, but coalitions of votes”; her disaffection with the traditional political class is one of the main reasons that brought her and Antanas Mockus together to form a radical agreement that has shaken up and revived interest in what, until last week, appeared to be a polarised and dull campaign. Although Enrique Peñalosa (Partido Verde [PV] and Partido de la U [PU]) and Gustavo Petro (Movimiento Progresista, MP) continue to alternate as poll leaders, Mockus’s decision to leave the race and back Parody has given voters a third alternative.
The alliance appears to have been destined to happen, or at least that is what Mockus believes: he said in a TV interview that talks began after he phoned Parody by mistake as he was trying to call a contact named Amparo. However, even if Mockus is convinced about Parody’s aptitude, it is unclear whether his supporters will transfer their votes to her. If she did pick up the Mockus vote, Parody would be in a three-way technical tie with the two favourites and she might breathe new life into the campaign by appealing to those voters who felt alienated from the main pair.
Parody could also help restore Mockus’s reputation since his image was damaged in an internal PV power struggle with Peñalosa, after which Mockus quit the party. In the same interview, Mockus said that as a professor, his goal is for his students to do better than him; if Parody were elected, he would have fulfilled such a dream.
For Parody, hers is a candidacy “with two heads” and she will consult campaign decisions with Mockus. The pair called the alliance “an agreement Mockus-Parody style”, for which no bureaucratic arrangements (such as pre-allocating cabinet posts) were made. As an extension of this, Parody said she would welcome the support of any other mayoral candidate who decided to step down, but only if they did so in a personal capacity, not with the backing of their parties. Parody has a strong public image, in contrast to the high rejection rates for Petro and Peñalosa, and it may be to her advantage that she has had a relatively short political career. That said Peñalosa and Petro also have unimpeachable reputations.
Highlights of the 14-point Mockus-Parody deal
Citizen culture: Its importance for Mockus and Parody has been underlined by the adoption of the “not everything goes” motto that Mockus instilled in the mind of Bogotanos during his two terms as mayor (1995-1997 & 2001-2003). This includes voluntary compliance with regulations, self-regulation and the rejection of illegality (i.e. politicians involved with paramilitary and guerrilla groups) in politics, both by private citizens and members of the city’s administration.
Education: Improve working conditions of teachers and students, through the construction of better facilities and economic incentives to top performers. They emphasise the need for bilingual public education, promising that every five-year old child who enters school during the next administration will graduate from secondary school speaking Spanish and English fluently.
Transparency: Mockus and Parody believe in meritocracies to ensure transparency in the administration of public finances. This also entails the publication of detailed government spending information.
Security: Improve police training to combat illegal armed groups with specialised elite units to prevent citizens taking the law into their own hands.–END BOX
- Parody’s biggest disappointment
In a recent interview with the local political weekly Semana, Parody said that the person who has disappointed her most in politics is “[former president Alvaro] Uribe. I admired him like crazy”. Formerly a senator for the PU, Parody split from Uribe (2002-2010) over his campaign for a second re-election at a time when many believed her move constituted political suicide. Today, her gutsy move is hailed as a reflection of her visionary politics.
