Bolivia Opens Electoral Reform as Diesel Deal Lifts Blockade and Cerimedo Faces New Claims
BOLIVIA · POLITICS
Key Facts
—What happened: Bolivia’s electoral tribunal opens a formal reform process in Cochabamba on Wednesday 2 September.
—The diesel deal: Beni farmers lifted their San Pablo bridge blockade on Sunday after the government guaranteed subsidised fuel.
—The catch: Farmers get diesel at Bs9.80 (US$0.82) only up to 120 litres, so the contested pricing decree survives intact.
—The other front: Detained consultant Fernando Cerimedo now faces accusations over black-market fuel, gold and drug flights.
—Who it touches: The claims reach President Rodrigo Paz’s inner circle, but none has been proven in court.
—What comes next: A protected witness hands evidence to prosecutors this week, and the reform dialogue widens within weeks.
Bolivia starts an electoral reform process on Wednesday, the government has bought peace with one protesting sector over the diesel subsidy, and the jailed Argentine consultant Fernando Cerimedo faces a wider web of trafficking accusations.
Fernando Cerimedo faces a widening web of accusations
Fernando Cerimedo is an Argentine political consultant and co-founder of the far-right outlet La Derecha Diario. He once advised Argentina’s President Javier Milei and later worked around Bolivia’s President Rodrigo Paz.
He has sat in Palmasola prison since mid-August, held over the attempted murder of his ex-partner, lawyer Nadia Beller. She survived three gunshots outside a hotel in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
A second case, for illicit enrichment, brought a second preventive detention order. Now prosecutors have opened a third investigation, into suspected links to drug trafficking in the Beni department.
Attorney General Roger Mariaca confirmed that new case last week. It centres on light aircraft that allegedly moved cocaine through clandestine airstrips in Bolivia’s Amazon north.
The fuel, the gold and the flights
Beller has been declared a protected witness and will hand evidence to La Paz prosecutors this week. Her statements allege a black-market fuel scheme at the state oil company, Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos, known as YPFB.
She claims two million litres of fuel were diverted daily and sold on the black market. The operation allegedly generated around 1 million bolivianos (US$84,000) a day, Argentine daily Página 12 reported.
Beller also links Fernando Cerimedo to an attempt to fly 189 kilograms of gold, worth about US$25 million, from Bolivia to Dubai. Police detained 22-year-old Adrián Lema Roca with four suitcases of gold at Viru Viru airport on 23 July.
The shipping documents were false, and prosecutors say the named companies did not exist. Crucially, prosecutors have not corroborated any link between Fernando Cerimedo and the gold shipment so far.
On the flights, Beller describes a scheme in which aircraft were supposedly freed to install radar transponders. The devices were never fitted, she says, and the planes and crews were never stopped.
One municipality under investigation is Santa Ana, in the Beni. Police found 316 kilograms of cocaine at a ranch there in March 2025.
Why the case matters beyond one man
The accusations reach the presidential family. Beller alleges that First Lady María Elena Urquidi, known as Bibi, discussed fuel quotas and a charge of one boliviano (US$0.08) per litre.
The presidential spokesman, José Luis Gálvez, rejected her claims as risky and demanded proof. The government says it is cooperating with every investigation.
Officials admit Fernando Cerimedo was a personal adviser to Paz, though never on the state payroll. Cerimedo’s defence calls the whole case a political show, and he keeps the presumption of innocence in all three causes.
In the enrichment case, prosecutors raided five properties and found US$100,000 in cash in various currencies. Documents point to another US$400,000 transferred abroad.
Questioned on Thursday, Fernando Cerimedo answered 159 of 219 questions with the phrase not related to the case. He first claimed an income of US$1 million a month, then said he meant a year.
The diesel deal that emptied the bridge
The second thread is the Bolivia diesel subsidy dispute, which we covered in detail last week. Decree 5676, signed on 16 August, charges large buyers Bs18 (US$1.51) a litre while others pay Bs9.80 (US$0.82).
Farmers from Marbán province in the Beni blocked the San Pablo bridge, the key link between Trinidad and Santa Cruz. Police cleared them once, and they returned within days.
On Sunday the two sides signed an agreement and the producers lifted the blockade after four days. The government committed to supply them diesel at the subsidised Bs9.80 (US$0.82) for volumes up to 120 litres, with weekly distribution.
The farmers declared a pause and expect compliance this week. Decree 5676 itself remains in force, and other farm towns such as San Julián have announced their own 24-hour blockades.
In parallel, fuel tanker drivers signed their own agreement with the government on Saturday. YPFB will start paying its debts to them, which should keep fuel moving to the pumps.
Behind the dispute sits the International Monetary Fund, or IMF. The government told mayors last week that the diesel decree is an IMF condition, a claim the Fund has not confirmed publicly.
Electoral reform opens on Wednesday
The third thread is institutional. The Supreme Electoral Tribunal, known as the TSE, starts a formal process towards an electoral reform in Cochabamba on Wednesday 2 September.
TSE president Gustavo Ávila Mercado announced the meeting on Sunday. The TSE will sit with the electoral tribunals of all nine departments.
The event, called the Meeting Towards the Electoral Reform, aims to identify the system’s main difficulties and draft legally viable proposals. Topics include the electoral roll, electoral justice, political representation and transparency controls.
The first phase is internal and produces an initial roadmap. Within weeks, the dialogue widens to political organisations, journalists, indigenous peoples and civil society.
Ávila framed it as a commitment to strengthen democracy and guarantee ever more transparent elections. Bolivia held a polarised two-round presidential vote in 2025 that brought Paz to power.
What to watch from here
First, watch Beller’s protected statement to prosecutors this week. It will test how much of the fuel, gold and flights narrative can be backed with documents.
Second, watch the Bolivia diesel subsidy truce. If the promised Bs9.80 (US$0.82) fuel does not arrive weekly, the San Pablo bridge can close again within days.
Third, watch Cochabamba on Wednesday. The roadmap the tribunals draw will shape the rules for every Bolivian election this decade.
Frequently Asked Questions
What electoral reform is Bolivia starting?
The Supreme Electoral Tribunal and the nine departmental tribunals meet in Cochabamba on Wednesday 2 September to open a reform process. They will draft proposals on the electoral roll, electoral justice, representation and transparency.
What did the government agree with the Beni farmers?
Farmers blocking the San Pablo bridge lifted their protest on Sunday after four days. The government committed to supply them diesel at the subsidised price of Bs9.80 (US$0.82) a litre, up to 120 litres, with weekly distribution.
What are the new accusations against Fernando Cerimedo?
His ex-partner alleges he was tied to black-market fuel sales, an attempt to fly 189 kilograms of gold to Dubai and drug flights through the Beni. None of the claims has been proven, and prosecutors have not corroborated the gold link.
Who is Nadia Beller?
She is a Bolivian lawyer and Cerimedo’s ex-partner who survived a shooting in Santa Cruz de la Sierra. She is now a protected witness and will deliver evidence to La Paz prosecutors this week.
Is the IMF behind Bolivia’s diesel price rise?
The government told mayors the decree splitting diesel prices is an IMF condition. The Fund has not confirmed this publicly, and its published statements on the Bolivia diesel subsidy programme do not name fuel.
Connected Coverage
We mapped Cerimedo’s regional network in Cerimedo, Parscale, Milei and Bolsonaro: the network behind the consultant. The diesel decree and the IMF claim were detailed in Bolivia’s diesel subsidy, the IMF and the roadblocks.
Sources: eju.tv; El Deber; Brújula Digital; unitel.bo; Red Uno; Opinión; Página 12; El Imparcial; La Jornada; ADN Radio; teleSUR. Boliviano conversions at the official rate of Bs11.93 per dollar on 28 August 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error
In depth
Read More from The Rio Times