Colombia’s first lady, Ana Lucia Pineda, vowed to reveal how much money she collected and spent in response to the August 10 earthquake that affected hundreds of thousands of people.
Amid mounting public pressure about where the money had gone, Pineda went on the morning program of public television channel Nuestro Caribe to promise that her foundation, Luz y Sonrisas, will take its finances public on Friday.
Carrying a white folder, the wife of President Abelardo de la Espriella stressed that “in the foundation’s accounts rest all, absolutely all of the monies from the donations we received during the ‘Colombia One Single Heart’ campaign” that was announced on August 12.
“A lie is not going to tear down the truth of who I am or what I represent, or how my children recognize me,” said Pineda.
Luz y Sonrisas was one of three NGO’s that were promoted by the De la Espriella government to collect contributions for victims of the earthquake.
Pineda’s foundation was the only one that could receive contributions from abroad.
Earlier in the week, news program Noticias Uno revealed that her foundation that was founded on July 7 lacked the tax exemption that would allow it to accept donations, a process that usually takes months.
In a press statement, tax office DIAN subsequently said that it had granted the tax exemption to the first lady and that she could legally accept financial contributions.
Pineda did not say how much money she had received, but said that she stopped supporting the initial relief efforts “because the humanitarian aid was sufficient, it was huge.”
The first lady vowed she had saved the donations for the reconstruction phase “because I have also taken the initiative to build and return to the victims a house that is durable for the families who lost everything.”
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