The seventh commission of the Senate has approved on Wednesday afternoon the first debate on the pension reform proposed by the Government of Gustavo Petro. The project, led by the Minister of Labor, Gloria Inés Ramírez, obtained 8 positive votes and only 3 negative ones, from the Democratic Center and the Conservative Party. Now, the reform will go to the plenary session of the Senate and then it will have to overcome two additional debates in the House of Representatives.
Although it still lacks three definitive steps to become law, the approval of the reform in this first instance is important because it prevents one of the government’s flagship projects from sinking. It allows discussion to continue in the next legislature without losing what has been achieved and avoids a political defeat for the Executive. The positive vote means then a relief for the Petro government, which in recent weeks has been in the midst of a deep political crisis generated by the scandal of Armando Benedetti and Laura Sarabia.
Minister Ramírez celebrated the approval of the reform at the end of the vote: “We have to continue building this reform so that all older adults, more than 3 million who are excluded from the system and almost indigent, have a national protection system to old age”. According to the Ministry, the objective of the bill is the unification of the public system, “strengthening Colpensiones and generating greater solidarity and universalization of the right to a dignified old age.”
The senator of the Historical Pact and rapporteur for the reform, Martha Peralta, also expressed her joy at the approval of the reform: “The pension reform has been officially approved in its entirety in Commission VII of the Senate. We did it, as speaker coordinator I feel very proud. An achievement of the peasants, of the indigenous people of the humble who will finally be able to have a dignified old age. Change is moving forward,” she wrote on her Twitter account.
The approved document keeps intact the pillar structure that the Government had presented from day one. If the reform ends as it is, four pillars will be created: solidarity, semi-contributory, contributory and voluntary savings. This is stated in Article 3, which according to Minister Ramírez is the heart of the reform. The agreement states that in the contributory pillar, in which the controversy has been concentrated, the Government managed to maintain the contribution threshold at three minimum wages. Private pension fund managers wanted to lower that threshold to one and a half salaries.
The minister explained the importance of this achievement. “This will allow a greater benefit for the elderly without the possibility of income and who will be part of the solidarity pillar with a monthly income of $223,800.” Ramírez also announced that the bill will include the court ruling that reduces the contribution weeks from 1,300 to 1,000 for women to access the right to a pension.
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Ramírez added that the creation of the savings fund was also approved during the discussion. “It is armored and guarantees that there is fiscal sustainability for all contributors, that their money will only be touched for the payment of pensions,” he explained. This point was key for parties declared independent such as the U or Mira to support the approval of the 94 articles of the reform.
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