by Rod Hughes

Is Vice President Laura Chinchilla, a former Minister of Public Security, the frontrunner in the nomination for National Liberation party’s 2010 candidate? If so, it would mark a truly early start in the party’s primary system. One would not expect maneuvering for a place on the ticket for another year or so.

First, President Oscar Arias speculated that he would not mind seeing Costa Rica get its first woman president and, since Chinchilla is the only woman in recent years to be mentioned in that context… You get the idea. And now, Minister of Housing and War against Poverty Fernando Zumbado has been stung by a story in the morning paper La Nación into admitting that he backs Chinchilla.

The story appeared this week in which the La Nación reporter noted that Zumbado was being very conspicuous, running around the country cutting ribbons on new government-funded housing projects for the poor, handing out home-building bonds to the poor, passing out high school scholarships to poor students and generally acting the role of Santa Claus. At one recent housing inauguration, he was even introduced as “Minister of the Poor.”

But in an angry phone call Wednesday night to the newspaper, he stoutly denied any presidential aspirations and let it slip that he favored Chinchilla. La Nación called the Vice President immediately after Zumbado hung up but she was not biting and did not pick up. Neither would the powerful Minister of the Presidency, Rodrigo Arias, the president’s chief of staff and brother, comment.

It is not far fetched that Zumbado might have been planning a run at the brass ring. He is relatively young, a good speaker and quite active in the party’s affairs. But it appears that the article may have been merely an exercise in journalistic cage-rattling, something that journalists do occasionally just to stir up the beasts.

by Rod Hughes

Saprissa is in freefall in the First Division soccer championship and even some sportswriters are panicked. The headline on the back cover of the paper La Nación speculated that if big purple “S” plays like this against Pachuca in the CONCACAF tourney finals, they can kiss goodbye to going to FIFA’s world championsip of clubs in Japan.

After winning nine matches in a row this year, Saprissa has lost its last four, the latest Wednesday night to Perez Zeledon, 1-0. In its own stadium, Ricardo Saprissa in Tibás, mind you. Now P-Z is not a bad club but is in third place in Group B, six points back from the group leader, Alajuela, and not likely to get much closer. It’s a well-balanced club but, other than Jewisson Bennett, pretty well filled with what’s-his-names. So what accounts for Saprissa’s sudden halt to its rocketing upward course and sudden conversion to bungee jumping with a cord too long?

The first two losses were mostly due to coach Jeaustin Campos resting his veterans and using bench sweepings. But all the familiar names were there Wednesday: Armando Alonso, Ronald Gomez, Michael Barrantes, Celso Borges…And the P-Z goal by Freddy Fernandez early in the first half came partly from Saprissa’s usually reliable goalie Keylor Navas storming out unwisely to break up a play while Freddy’s teammate Tirso Guio fed in a pass with a free kick.

This is not about resting veterans for an important tournament match. This is due to: (Pick one. You will be graded on your answer.)
1. A guilt complex at having stolen the spotlight from other teams so far this year.
2. A massive amnesia attack where Saprissa players cannot remember their positions between tournament matches.
3. A voodoo curse.