Accused
Calderón Presidential Candidate
For the PUSC
Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier has been
officially nominated as the candidate to
lead the Partido Unidad Social Cristiana (PUSC)
into the 2010 presidential elections. The
former president has been giving the mandate
by the party's national and general
assembly.
"I accept the challenge", Calderón told the
hundreds who came out for the event Friday
night and said he intends to raise the party
flag high, not only to bring the PUSC back
to power, but to "drive Costa rica with the
commitment of social justice".
Calderón, who was president of Costa Rica
from 1990 to 1994, is in the final stages of
a embezzlement and corruption trial, who
with seven others, is facing charges in the
Fischel-Caja trial that began last November.
The former president had said all along that
he would be seeking the party nomination for
the 2010 elections, no matter the outcome of
the trial, which is still believes will
absolve of him of any wrongdoing.
The nomination of Calderón also has brought
back to the party a number of people who
deserted the the rank and file after the
loss in 2006, a loss that saw the party slip
to third place under the leadership of
Ricardo Toledo and not only lose its power
to form a government, but also its
traditional alternating role of opposition
party.
The loss was too much for many PUSC party
members following eight years of government,
four under Miguel Angel Rodriguez
(1998-2002) and four under Abel Pacheco
(2002-2006).
"My father (Calderón Guardia) would say to
me 'keep on fighting', do not fall down, go
forward, raise the workers, go to fight.
Remember, they called me a traitor to the
country, and the same who had to declare me
benefactor", said the former president,
referring to the creation of social
security, the Labour Code and the
Universidad de Costa Rica 9UCR) all under
the presidency of his father (1940 - 1944).
The former president then launched into a
political rhetoric of the needs of the
people and the country and the party's
commitment to change the injustices and
security, receiving applauds and support not
only from the party national assembly, but
also from the president of the Organización
Demócrata Cristiana de América, Manual
Espino and former Venezuelan presidential
candidate for the Copei party, Eduardo
Fernández.
During the event at no time did Calderón
refer or comment on his trial and the
possible outcome. Nor was he questioned on
the subject.
In 2010, Calderón will go head to head
with Laura Chinchilla of the PLN and Otton
Solis of the PAC, both have been officially
nominated as candidates by their respective
parties.
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Former
president Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier was
nominated at the presidential candidate for
the PUSC in 2010. During the nomination
ceremony no mention was made of the trial
that the former president is currently
facing and questioned of the possible
outcome.
Calderón has maintained his innocence from
the beginning and has said he would seek the
party nomination and run for president no
matter of the outcome of the trial, which
began last November and is expected to be at
an end soon. |
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