Colombian ex-president Alvaro Uribe Velez has tested positive for COVID-19, just one day after the country's Supreme Court issued a house arrest order for him., CNN reported.

"President Álvaro Uribe has tested positive for Covid-19. However, his state of health is optimal, he has not presented any major symptoms, or any respiratory difficulties," Gabriel Velasco, senator and spokesman for the Democratic Center party, said Wednesday.

Uribe is one of Colombia's most controversial political figures. His presidency followed decades of drug-guerrilla violence and a failed peace process between the government and the leftist guerrilla group FARC.

His "tough hand" approach to guerrilla groups has largely restored the country's economy and, most importantly, the Colombians' sense of security. But his tactics were also deeply outraged.

Colombia was shocked by the news of his house arrest. Supporters and opponents of the former president gathered in the capital, Bogota, following a Supreme Court decision.

Colombian President Ivan Duque, a protege of Uribe's, said on Tuesday he believes in the former president's innocence.