Colombia president Alvaro Uribe received a big boost yesterday after Congress passed a bill allowing the head of state to run for a second term of office.
The bill was passed by 113 votes to 16 in the House of Representatives after it was earlier passed in the Senate. The bill will now be presented before the Constitutional Court, whose approval is required before it can come into effect. Analysts say this should be a relatively smooth process, although there may be some minor tinkering of the proposal.
Investors, who are anxious that Uribe continues with his hardline stance against left- and right-wing rebels, will welcome the change in the re-election rule. Some Colombians, though, are worried that the move will provide presidents with too much power.