Paraguay: The First 100 Days of Lugo's Presidency


Fernando Lugo

Photo by Fernando Lugo APC and used under a Creative Commons license.

The first 100 days have passed since Paraguay’s elected President Fernando Lugo assumed power last August. Paraguayans were eager for a change, a change that had raised so many expectations from the new President, who was an ex-bishop and from his cabinet. Some bloggers took time to write about the first 100 days of Lugo's Presidency.

The blog Rescatar [es] compares the first 100 days of Lugo with a Pau D’arco tree (Tajy) saying that people expected to see the blooming flowers on the tree, but they have yet to see them.

No se han visto mucho los cambios pero se han sentido. Para situarlo en un plano botánico a fin de graficar lo que a nuestro juicio aconteció en estos primeros tres meses es que la gente quería ver al Tajy florecer y lo que hizo el árbol fue fortalecer sus raíces para prenderse más fuerte al suelo y evitar que los vientos que han comenzado a soplar lo tumben fácilmente.

Changes have not been seen, but they have been felt. To situate it in a botanical plan, which is what has happened in these three first months, the people wanted to see the Tajy bloom, but instead the tree strengthened its roots in order to make itself stronger in the soil and avoid that the winds would knock it down easily.

Edgar Ruiz Diaz in his blog Las Preguntas de Venerando [es] decided to give Lugo and his Cabinet ratings from 1 to 10 for their 100 first days for their accomplishments.

Presidente Fernando Lugo: El viaje se constituyó en sinónimo de trabajo presidencial porque desde que asumió la Presidencia de la República todas las semanas utiliza uno o más aviones para trasladarse a ciudades del exterior o localidades del interior del país. Con su promesa de traer el cambio al país, transformó algunas modalidades de atención a la gente en ese sentido estableció Mburuvicha Roga como sitio de reuniones con sintechos y sintierras para discutir sobre invasiones. Por sus actitudes, el ex obispo parece haber pensado en serio que un vicepresidente se asemeja al florero sobre un escritorio y pese a sus desaciertos o errores creo que el Jefe de Estado puede mejorar y por eso mi calificación para él es cinco en este post.

President Fernando Lugo: His travels have become synonymous of presidential work because ever since he assumed the Presidency he uses one or more airplanes to travel abroad or to other locations within the country every week. With his promise to bring change to the country, he has transformed some of the modalities of attention and that is why he established Mburuvicha Roga (the presidential house) as a place for meetings to discuss with the homeless and landless peoples regarding the invasions. For his attitude, the ex-bishop appears to have thought seriously that a vice-president resembles a vase on top of a desk, and in spite of his mistakes or errors, I think that the Head of State can improve and because of that I grade him a 5.

Lopez Barrios of El blog de Lopez Barrios [es] says that so far, Lugo has tried to govern his country with pacifism, but things are not going according to plan.

Fernando Lugo según mi manera de ver ha tratado de llevar con cierto grado de pacifismo los rumbos de su patria, la verdad es que al día de la fecha las cosas ya no están pacificas… el caos reina por doquier… y aun cuando nos esforcemos en tener una mirada optimista, la urgente determinación sobre asuntos de seguridad de índole prioritaria brilla por su ausencia.

Fernando Lugo according to my way of seeing things has tried to take the country with a certain degree of pacifism, the truth is that currently things are no so peaceful anymore… the chaos rules… and even when we try harder to have a more positive view, the urgent decisions regarding security matters, which is a priority is absent.

The first days of a new government is a short time to have a conclusive opinion of the government per se, but it is enough time to notice it flaws and its strengths, as many of the country's bloggers have done. There is no miracle, there is no secret, and it is a process. As any process, it takes time and with the right strategies a lot of hard work and perhaps a bit of luck, the new President is hoping that the country will overcome the flaws and make of this country a prosperous nation once again.

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