One day after the death of little Michelle Pernía at “Puente Unión”, which connects Boca de Grita, Venezuela, with Puerto Santander, Colombia, after they prevented the crossing of the ambulance in which she being transported, the patients continue to be crossed over in wooden carts and wheelbarrows into Colombian territory.
By Anggy Polanco / La Patilla Correspondent
This Thursday afternoon, a man from “La Fría” (a town in Táchira State, Venezuela) who was transferred in the hopper of a truck to the border post of “Boca de Grita”, to be taken to a healthcare center in Puerto Santander, was not allowed to pass in the vehicle where he was lying down, with several IV hoses, in an evident serious condition.
The parishioners of Boca de Grita, seeing that National Guard officials at the border control point did not let the truck with the patient pass through, recorded the event on video.
The patient was moved over to a wooden cart and crossed over with three people who held the serum IV bottles and accompanied him. The whole event was recorded in video by the merchants of Puerto Santander, in which people are seen running with the cart where the sick man is being transported.
This event occurred even after the chavista governor of Táchira State, Freddy Bernal, said that they would investigate the event that led to the death of toddler Michelle Pernia, so that responsibilities can be determined.
“I know that the passage has not been regularized, but in my opinion there are things of common sense, which I am sure that if they had asked for permission, we would have authorized it. I understand that there is no formal step, but when it comes to a human life, in my opinion, you have to do something beyond formality and from that border post it was not difficult for them to inform General Rosales, who would have informed me and we would have authorized the passage,” said Bernal.
Despite the fact that the governor of Táchira stated that this type of thing cannot happen again, especially now that there are “excellent” relations with President Gustavo Petro, patients continue to be passed around in wheelbarrows and wooden carts.