On August 16, 2026, Colombian President-elect Álvaro del Castillo de Esplvía distributed footballs with his campaign logo to disaster victims during an inspection of the earthquake-stricken area, which caused outrage among the public. In the video, Del Castillo is surrounded by bodyguards, and next to his vehicle, he throws the footballs towards the disaster victims.
A resident harshly criticized the De La Espurea government, accusing it of transporting footballs and sports equipment to the disaster area while ignoring urgent needs in areas such as medical care, education, and food supply. “There is a health crisis and an education crisis here. Over 26 schools have collapsed! 26 schools! The medical services in the hospitals are paralyzed, and what people receive instead are footballs. Is that really right? At the same time, children are dying of hunger? This is too tragic. This is a monstrous act against us.”
According to Colombian media reports on the 16th, a strong earthquake in Colombia on the 10th resulted in 289 deaths, 143 people missing, and 4,187 injuries. The affected population exceeded 180,000 people. More than 20 schools were destroyed in the area, and hospital medical services were completely paralyzed. The disaster area is facing serious health and survival issues.
The video has sparked heated discussions online. According to a video posted by the Qatar Peninsula Media Network, there appears to be a logo from his presidential campaign printed on the soccer ball that Draeyspunya threw towards the disaster victims. Many netizens also question whether, since the presidential campaign has come to an end, the logo on the soccer ball could mean that the ball was even used during the campaign period. Some people directly criticized it as “so embarrassing! Shameful!”
Del Áez Pulaya is known for creating gags in his way of conducting affairs. This new president, who has released several albums, even during the press conference at the scene of the Colombian earthquake, waved hands, gave kisses with their fingers, and made other exaggerated gestures, which led to criticism from the public for his frivolous behavior.
As early as August 10, during the initial stages of the earthquake, Dela Espya announced that Colombia had entered a “national disaster state”. At that time, reports indicated that the earthquake caused at least 132 deaths.
After the earthquake, the Colombian government implemented several local disaster relief measures. Officials provided rent subsidies for families whose homes were damaged, and granted financial assistance to more than 1,400 households. Additionally, affected families were allowed to postpone paying utility bills and income tax declarations.
Meanwhile, various countries have also started to offer assistance to Colombia to help it through this difficult time. However, Colombia has rejected some of these requests.
On August 11, several countries and organizations including the United Nations reported that they had not received any requests for assistance from Colombian authorities. According to reports from Colombian television station NTN24, an official letter revealed that the decision to deny international rescuers access to Colombia originated from Javier Pávaro, the director of the National Risk Management and Disaster Department during the presidency of former President Gustavo Petro.
Although the left-wing government had already ceased its rule four days before the earthquake occurred, Pava did not leave office until August 11, 24 hours after the earthquake. It was he who signed that document sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The document recommends that no international professional search and rescue teams should be requested or launched. Colombia has sufficient capabilities to handle this emergency situation.
Previously, the Petro faction had been able to avoid international criticism by not accepting international aid. However, after the journalists exposed that letter, this faction completely fell into silence.
As of the 12th, the Colombian government appointed David Tamayo Rolando as the director of the National Disaster Risk Management Agency, to lead disaster response efforts. Authorities stated that they had requested assistance only from rescue teams from the United States, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Israel, believing that these countries’ teams have the international and domestic certifications necessary to carry out rescue missions. According to the Asahi Shimbun, the rescue teams from these four countries are expected to arrive at the disaster site by the 12th.
After the disaster occurred, the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has established diplomatic channels with friendly countries. While receiving rescue teams from four countries, the United States also provided Colombia with $15.5 million in relief funds and formed a disaster assistance response team. The Japanese sent thousands of paper cranes.
During their phone call between Dra Espuleya and U.S. President Trump, Dra Espuleya also requested that the U.S. temporarily suspend the tariffs imposed on the country's goods, in order to mitigate the economic impact of the severe earthquake on local businesses.
Facing criticism from only those who accepted aid from right-wing countries, Colombia’s current Foreign Minister Omar Blanco denied that international aid was blocked due to political or ideological reasons. Colombian political scientist Borda pointed out that the difficulties in managing aid were related to the tense political transition period between the new and old governments, during which there was a lack of a formal handover process.
In contrast, Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto stated during a morning news conference on August 13 that the Colombian government did not authorize the rescue teams sent by the Mexican Ministry of Defense to enter the country.
Although the entry of rescue teams has been prohibited, Colombia is currently receiving supplies from countries such as Mexico.
Columbia demanded certification, although they already had certification, but now another certification was required," Xie Yinbo explained, as the Mexican government continued to provide humanitarian aid to Columbia. Food packages, medical supplies and other aid materials would be transported via the Mexican Air Force's Hercules aircraft.
Meanwhile, Hua Chunying, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a press conference on the 12th: "China hopes to provide possible support in a manner that suits Colombia's needs." In the early hours of August 18th, the Chinese government delivered a total of 80 tons of emergency humanitarian relief supplies for Colombia. These supplies include generators and water purification vehicles, among other urgently needed relief items, and are scheduled to arrive by noon on August 18th, local time.
International organizations also continue to provide assistance to Colombia. The Children's Fund provides water, sanitation, and personal hygiene supplies to 22,000 people in Chocó and Buenaventura, including household cleaning products, maternal care supplies, menstrual hygiene products, and water storage containers. The Children's Fund has also worked with the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare to strengthen prevention and response measures for children affected by the earthquake.
According to the World Food Programme, before the earthquake, the number of people suffering from hunger in some parts of Colombia was already alarming. In Chocó, with the addition of conflict and displacement, 31% of the population faced food security issues; in Valle del Cauca, this figure was 29%. A total of 7 million people in Colombia's most vulnerable areas have experienced moderate to severe food security problems.
This earthquake has not only caused shortages of supplies, but also displaced people who urgently need food, medicine, and shelter. These problems have made the situation even worse.
Even though the Colombian authorities denied that their actions were linked to politics, at this time, the hungry people looked forward to food and supplies from the president. Instead, they desperately received footballs with election logos. During the earthquake, principles of life should have been upheld. However, Delaespleya deviated from the real needs of the disaster area, taking lives from the victims. Amid the suffering, he staged a show of a shift in political orientation.
