Right-wing lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella sworn in as new Colombian president: All you need to know about him

Abelardo de la Espriella took office as Colombia’s president on Friday (local time), marking the start of a conservative administration that vows to depart sharply from predecessor Gustavo Petro’s left-wing government amid growing concerns about the country’s finances and rising violence.

Colombia's new president takes oath

He took the oath before Congress at a ceremony in Cali and became the first Colombian president in recent history to be inaugurated outside the capital city of Bogotá, Bloomberg reported.

In his inaugural address, De la Espriella said, "The time for restoring order, authority and freedom has begun." He also vowed to build mega-prisons, use the military to fight criminal organisations and eradicate coca crops with herbicides, adding, "Those who did not believe in my proposal will find, in the facts, that this project will serve the common good.”

The new president said efforts to negotiate with criminal groups “are exhausted,” referring to Petro’s peace talks with armed factions that effectively control large parts of the country. He said members of organised crime groups “face two paths: submit to the rule of law or confront the resolute force of the Colombian state,” adding that “No heinous crime will be treated with kid gloves by the Colombian state.”

During the election campaign, he frequently embraced his self-styled nickname "The Tiger", posting AI-generated images of himself as a fanged tiger and presenting himself as the only candidate prepared to wage war against crime and insurgency. In his inauguration speech, he pledged that "in the age of the Tiger," the state "will be forceful and decisive against crime."

Who is De la Espriella?

Abelardo de la Espriella is a 48-year-old lawyer who has succeeded Petro, the nation’s first leftist leader. According to Justice For Colombia's website, De la Espriella was born into a wealthy family in Bogotá in 1978, later moved to Córdoba as an infant, and was raised in a wealthy small-town household that placed importance on building influential connections.

Between 2001 and 2002, his father, Abelardo Sr, managed Álvaro Uribe’s regional election campaign in Córdoba. Uribe went on to win the presidency despite allegations of links to drug traffickers and paramilitary groups. His 2002-10 administrations were marked by divisive neoliberal policies and the systematic suppression of civil society groups he viewed as ‘internal enemies’ involved in ‘subversion’, including opposition parties, trade unions and human rights organisations. The political violence carried out under Uribe in favour of wealthy interests has led some to describe him as a fascist and his political movement as a form of fascism.

Based between Bogotá and Miami, the incumbent Colombian president rose to prominence as a defence lawyer for paramilitaries, businessmen and politicians accused of corruption. In 2007, he represented former Justice Minister Alberto Santofimio, who was suspected of involvement in the 1989 assassination of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán. He later defended David Murcia Guzmán, a Colombian businessman who, through a pyramid scheme, defrauded tens of thousands of low-income people of their life savings while laundering drug-trafficking profits.

US announces financial package for Colombia

Shortly after De la Espriella was sworn in, the United States announced plans for a $1 billion financial package to help his administration combat crime and boost the country's energy sector, extending US President Donald Trump’s support for De la Espriella during his presidential campaign.

The new administration now faces the challenge of turning its tough campaign promises into action while addressing Colombia’s security and economic concerns.

(with agency inputs)