Many politicians are haunted by their past. Some are haunted by their predecessors. One mayor in Colombia is haunted by a ghost that attacks security guards in a government building for no apparent reason. If this drives him out of office, there will be a line of countries interested in hiring this politic-ergeist.
“I want to share this video with you today, stressing that as mayor I have the conviction that faith has unbeatable power. I want to give everyone a part of peace of mind and know that in the company of Mr. Bishop and other religious leaders, we will bring the blessing of God to every corner of this workspace.”
And that’s just for a ghost! What does Mayor Jose Manuel Rios Morales of the mountainous coffee-producing city of Armenia, Colombia, do when he’s facing economic problems or natural disasters? What caused Mayor Morales to post a video message to his constituents on Facebook was security camera footage of one of his guards making his rounds in the Mayor’s Office building when he appeared to be pushed, knocked down and attacked as he tried to crawl away by something unseen. (Watch the video hereAlcalde de Armenia denuncia que un fantasma atacó a un vigilante | Semana Tv.) The guard appeared to be looking for something or someone prior to the ‘attack’ sometime after 11 pm, and the video ends as other persons, possibly fellow guards, come running to assist him. They don’t seem to be aware of any unseen presence and the video ends upon their arrival and attempts to pick him up off the floor.
“Everyone will draw their own conclusions. I also want to inform you that the video is available to anyone who wants to do the respective investigation.”
The mayor says he shared the video with the bishop of Armenia, Monsignor Carlos Arturo Quintero, but does not reveal the bishop’s assessment. All of the media reports seem to be based on the Facebook post with no additional information nor comments from the guard or the other witnesses. The offer from the mayor to study the original seems futile considering the poor quality — albeit typical of CCTV footage – of the video. Comments seem to be divided as expected among those who already believe in ghosts and spirits, those who think it’s a hoax and those who don’t care for politicians in general – obviously, there’s some overlap. Why would the mayor of a major city (population almost 300,000, capital of the Quindio Department) be involved in a ghost hoax?
“We ask respect and a union in prayer, and we assure you that nothing will be able to steal our peace and tranquility because we are protected by the hand of our Lord.”
It’s a ghost, Mr. Mayor – not an air attack or a hurricane. Colombia has had its share of reports of mass possessions and evil spirits, and the country has a rich folklore of nasty demons – there’s El Sombrerón, the Man in the Hat who terrorizes people out at night. Or El Mohán, a hairy creature with claw-like nails who sinks fishing boats and steals hooks and bait. And La Patasola, the One-Legged Woman who lives in the jungle and hops on one leg while chasing men.
On second thought … maybe the mayor was right to assure his constituents that he has this poltergeist under control and share the video showing it’s not the Man in the Hat.
Unless it’s his cousin – the Invisible Man in the Hat.
By Paul Seaburn
Mysterious Universe
