Returning to San Juan is returning to the wonderful days of my existence, when I walked these streets full of joy , looking forward to sharing with my friends, looking forward to enjoying this land. Of kind, dear, hardworking people, of beautiful women, of great composers like the great Luis Egurrola. May God have him in his glory. Being here is like going back in time and feeling in this heat, the warmth of the people of San Juan who welcomed me with such affection more than three decades ago. And who would have thought? An adopted son of this land would 30 years later be President of the Republic to give San Juan the place it deserves in this miracle nation. And I remember mythological characters. Sandroini Churro with Sandro Suchini, the iguana of Petra Gámez the yucca of the Pondores. Returning to San Juan is returning to poetry, to music, to the cradle of composers festival, to this land of extraordinary people, of wonderful people who, despite adversity , have moved forward with total respect for traditions, for family, for folklore, and for that Vallenato music which is the soul of Colombian identity . Thank you, San Juan. Because you have given much, so much to this miracle nation that we are going to build together. And being here is no coincidence. God knows how He does His things. This was the only municipality out of the 15 in La Guajira where I won . The one where I won. It didn't seem, it didn't seem strange to me because I am a San Juanero. We San Juaneros are so tough that we are born wherever we feel like it. And just now they were telling me that we had to speak quickly and leave quickly because we had to return to Riohacha. And I just told my security team, I don't leave a land quickly, no leaving at all. Anyway one cannot leave a place one has never really left. We love you, Abelardo. We love you. Stand firm. My wife told me, "Be careful with the women of San Juan because they are very pretty." There are the girls who support me. A round of applause for them. There are the ladies who support me. Thank you, ladies. One can never, one cannot leave a place one has never left. I don't think there was a single conversation with my friends in which San Juan didn't come up. Because the memories of this wonderful land are so vivid and took such hold in my heart that San Juan is an integral part of the tiger's history , and the tiger will make history in San Juan. Look at that beauty. Look at how beautiful the square is. You have no idea the joy it gives me to be here, and this affection from the people of San Juan gives me the strength to keep fighting for our homeland. I have all the flaws in the world, except for two: being a coward and being ungrateful. I have all the rest, but I am neither a coward nor ungrateful, and I will never forget the affection and support of San Juan del César. I feel at home here, and it’s as if three decades hadn't passed, because this magical land— this land of beautiful women and great composers, of guitars and notes that touch the soul—is a land that deserves more opportunities. It is a land that deserves more security. It is a land that deserves a better future, and with God's help, the support of our public forces, and the contribution of all the people of San Juan, we will give this magical land the place it deserves in our Miracle nation. And this, this is not just a simple promise , because I am not a politician. I come from the private sector. In the private sector, we don't make promises; we make commitments. And my commitment to this town, which is in my heart, is to alleviate its pain. Because the pain of San Juan is the pain of the tiger, Abelardo de la Espriella. We will see each other here again because I will come as many times as necessary to verify the works, to verify the progress, and to come and deliver the bodies of the bandits who have plagued this region. And we are going to return to security, either by reason or by force. Any bandit who does not submit will be taken down, as the law provides . I take this opportunity to send this message to the head of the Gulf Clan in the region, Rufino José Morales, alias Mario; to the bandit known as Pinocho, head of the Conquistador Self-Defense Forces of the Sierra; and to the bandit known as Gonzalo, from the Second Marquetalia: you have an expiration date because you messed with San Juan, you messed with the tiger's heart. Abelardo de la Espriella. Before, before becoming president, I toured the regions of Colombia and gave my word. If I reached the government, the territories would stop making pilgrimages to Bogotá, with mayors and governors begging for projects. They grew tired in Bogotá of humiliating our people, and today I am here to keep that word. Mayors and governors will not have to go begging in Bogotá because the government of the Miracle nation will come to the regions of Colombia. La Guajira cannot continue to be a rich land with a population condemned to live in poverty. There is water here, there is farming, mining, tourism, culture, talent, and above all , extraordinary people who only need the state to do its job and let them work. San Juan del César, in addition to what it means to me, is of great importance because it is a PEDET municipality and part of a region with an enormous agricultural and productive vocation, yet it still faces infrastructure and competitiveness gaps that we must close. And I will start with water, as you rightly pointed out, dear Governor. For a long time, the Ranchería dam has been the symbol of a Colombia that begins with great projects, invests huge resources, and then leaves the community abandoned, waiting for the benefits of those projects. That has to change, doesn't it? In rhetoric—because I am not a man of endless speeches and ramblings —I am a man of results, and I am used to being told that things cannot be done because I do the impossible and leave the easy stuff to others. And what seems impossible in San Juan, in the age of the tiger, we will make a reality. Our Minister of Agriculture. I have given instructions to the Minister of Agriculture to structure the appropriate financial vehicle, with the help of international cooperation, to allow the El Cercado dam on the Ranchería River to become operational. If I have to, Minister Indalecio, pick up the phone as I have done during the earthquake, to pass the hat and raise funds internationally, you just have to tell me, because I am a soldier for San Juan. The Ranchería must become the heart of the productive and social transformation of southern La Guajira. That is why today I committed myself here before you to do whatever is necessary to make that dream come true. The water from El Cercado already reaches Fonseca, San Juan, and towns like La Junta, La Peña, and Curazao, and there is a possibility it will reach even as far as Barrancas and Hatonuevo. What do we have to do? Complement the regional system, expand coverage, and turn that infrastructure into water for Guajira families, but also water for agricultural production, Minister, because here in La Guajira, water means life, but it also means food, agriculture, employment, and food security. And along with water, dear people of San Juan, come the roads. It is useless to tell farmers to produce if they then have no roads to transport their products and get their harvest out. That is why we must advance in the improvement of tertiary roads and strategic connections in the south of the La Guajira department. The Caracolí road. I know this has been a long-held dream for the people of San Juan. We have already reviewed this road project and it is in phase three. Today I commit to you to begin the first functional unit, worth 65 billion pesos. We are short on funds, but with God's help, we will get that money. Dear compatriots, we have identified the needs involving the waters of Villanueva and Urumita, as well as the Toma Razón-Distracción connection and the Francisco el Hombre corridor towards Riohacha, which we will work on . The countryside, dear friends in San Juan, needs roads and security, not speeches. A tertiary road means a producer can get their harvest out, it means a child can get to school more easily. It means an ambulance can come in to pick up a sick person. It means a family can sell what they produce and improve their income. And that is the logic of the "Tiger's" government: to turn every public peso into a concrete solution for our people, as it should be. We will also work for the safety of the producer, to combat cattle rustling —100 heads of cattle, 100 heads of cattle in one year in San Juan del Cesar. That is going to change and we are going to restore order with the determination and the iron fist of the Colombian State. That is the government of the regions. That is the government of the people, a government that moves out from behind the desks. I have told the ministers: leave the PowerPoint, leave the PowerPoint and stick to the " Power People." That is what we need. We offer a government that reaches the people and a president who is on top of things, verifying the works and pushing whoever needs to be pushed. La Guajira can become one of the great engines of Colombia. We have great possibilities here in this department. La Guajira is not poor; La Guajira is rich. The thing is, they have always wanted to make you believe it is poor, and we will not allow that anymore because we are going to bring this land to the full potential it can offer this miracle nation. Southern La Guajira has the fields, culture, energy, and enough people to lead the transformation I am proposing to you. Dear compatriots, I am not asking you to believe in another promise. I am asking you to measure the results of this government, to see what we are going to do here, because I know that I am in the heart of San Juan and San Juan has a special place in the Tiger's heart. San Juan, you are the most beautiful among the flowers of my Guajira. The most beautiful. I felt, at the end of the path, the infinite weeping of a woman. It is a San Juan tradition to give your heart. Thank you, San Juan, for your affection. Thank you, San Juan , for being a fundamental part of the tiger pack. This adopted son of San Juan will fill this land of patriots and brave people with pride. Today, a new page in the history of San Juan begins to be written, a page that says San Juan had an adopted son who was president and transformed this land forever. Let's go tiger roar, tiger roar, tiger. Today more than ever, I am firm for San Juan, firm for La Guajira, and firm for the homeland. Long live Christ the King . I carry you in my heart.