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News · ColombiaColombia's president responds to jokes about his head: Where do you think all this intelligence fits?
While trying on an aguadeño hat he was given, Abelardo de la Espriella joked about the memes calling him "big-headed" and "big-foreheaded". The video went viral and split social media.
Translated from the original Spanish article. Read in Spanish
News published on October 28, 2026. The situation may have changed since then.
Colombia's president, Abelardo de la Espriella, has an answer for those who make fun of his head. And the video is already everywhere.
What happened
On October 28, 2026, during an official visit to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, he was given an aguadeño hat, one of Colombia's most famous traditional hats.
As he tried it on, the president took the chance to talk about the comments circulating on social media about the size of his head and forehead. He admitted that people call him "cabezón" (big-headed) and "frentón" (big-foreheaded), and finished, laughing:
"Where do you think all this intelligence fits?"
The audience in the room burst out laughing.
The aguadeño hat is handwoven from iraca palm fiber in Aguadas, a town in Caldas.
Why it went viral
The video spread like wildfire on X, TikTok and Instagram and divided opinion:
Many people liked that the president laughed at himself instead of getting angry about the memes.
Others kept up the jokes, and some criticized him for talking about his appearance at an official event.
De la Espriella also asked, more seriously, why a person's physical features should be something to mock.
Who Abelardo de la Espriella is
He is a right-wing lawyer who won the 2026 presidential election and took office on August 7. He is known for his direct style and heavy use of social media, which explains why a moment like this goes viral so quickly.
The aguadeño hat
It is named after Aguadas, a town in the department of Caldas, where artisans weave it by hand from iraca palm. Making one can take several days of work, and it is often given to distinguished visitors as a symbol of the country.
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Do you think it's good for a president to laugh at himself, or should he ignore the memes?
Tell us in the comments on our social media.
Sources (in Spanish)
- El momento del sombrero y la frase del presidente: Pulzo (28 de octubre de 2026).
- Toma de posesión el 7 de agosto de 2026: Presidencia de Ecuador, foto de la reunión bilateral en Cali (Wikimedia Commons).
- El sombrero aguadeño: Wikipedia, Sombrero aguadeño.
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons under free licenses; the author and license are shown under each image.
