Pacheco Did His Best, According to Arias
In an interview with the daily Spanish language newspaper, Al Día, former president and now presidential candidate for the 2006 elections, spoke frankly about the current administration, the challengers and the future of Costa Rica.

"Don Abel (referring to president Abel Pacheco) did the best he could. He is the first to recognize that he did not reach his objectives, I don't think he will leave office satisfied", said Arias.

Arias had words of praise for Pacheco, saying that they continue to be close and his has a lot of "cariño (affection), though they are political rivals, belonging to two main parties that have held power in Costa Rica for decades.

According to Arias, bi-partialism is dead. The political arena is now filled with a number of parties, some small, others making inroads and could in the near future elect a president. But, not in the 2006 election, where Arias feels he is a shoe in and there will not be a second round election as in 2002.

Arias, who is candidate for the Partido Liberación Naciona (PLN) - the green party - is the front runner. Ricardo Toledo, the candidate for the Partido Unidad Social Cristiana - red party - is a distant second, while the others like Ottón Solís and Otto Guevara, are too far away from making any difference.

Solís and his party, the Partido Accion Cuidana (PAC) came in third in the 2002 election and forced a second round vote beteween the PLN and PUSC candidates, that saw Pacheco to the presidency.

Arias, if elected, will be first president to be re-elected to the presidency since the country's political constitution was changed to allow such. Asked if former president Calderón, who is being investigated for corruption and who has spent months in jail and under house arrest in the last year, would think of running again in the future, Arias said not likely.

Asked if Costa Rica is ready to elect a woman president, Arias said he is not sure, though he, like other front runners, have chosen a woman for the first vice-presidential spot. Under Costa Rica's political constitution, the first vice-president, will be named president, if the president is permanently incapacitated. Though, in that case, a woman was not elected to the presidential office, she was chosen by a person whom the people elected.

Arias says that the country is not advancing for the lack of governing, referring to his followers after he left the presidency in 1990. Since 1990, only Figueres (1994-1998) was of the PLN party, the others, Calderón, Rodríguez and Pacheco are of the PUSC party.

Asked if will keep his ICE - the state monopoly on telecommunications - cellular phone once the marked opens up to competition, Arias said he will then choose which is the best service at the cheapest price.

Have you already won? Arias answered the question with the grace of a seasoned politician, saying that that is what the polls say, but anything can change between now and February.