Monday, August 1, 2011

'I hope this means the beginning of a more constructive relationship with CFK,' Macri

Re-elected BA City Mayor Mauricio Macri, gave a press conference before starting a City cabinet meeting and when asked what were his feelings after noticing that President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner was on the phone to congratulate him, he said “First thing I thought was ‘Well, I hope this means the beginning of a more constructive relationship’.”

Likewise, Macri said not to be shocked by the call as he explained “I always thought that it was a common thing, at least in the rest of the world”, and remembered, “Last week, I personally called Antonio Bonfatti and Hermes Binner to congratulate them for the victory in Santa Fe.”        

Furthermore, the Mayor explained “There is not a single Argentine not thinking that politicians must go beyond their narcissism and work together for a common cause. People can’t stand anymore intolerance. The real enemies are other and they are out there. Poverty is one of them.”

Yesterday’s triumph encouraged Macri to retake his presidential hopes for 2015 as he expressed that “the results obtained give us four more years to keep learning and preparing ourselves for what’s next.”

Asked about the large margin (28.5%) clinched last night, the tycoon remembered all the fuzz triggered after the first round which witnessed Macri ramping a 20 percent lead over Victory Front’s Filmus, “They said that people was wrong for voting us, that City inhabitants were not thinking clearly, but I say people is not wrong.” 

Moreover, Macri insisted that votes obtained “do not belong to the PRO party, those were the votes of people who seek for a new way of doing politics, aimed to provide better services, and always respecting the law, as well personal freedom and diversity.”

Likewise, the business tycoon, who constantly refused to participate in public debates with the rest of the mayoral candidates, indicated that he won’t set any pre-conditions for having talks with the presidential hopefuls as he pretends to listen to “all candidates’ propositions, even President Fernández de Kirchner. I’d love to listen what she has to say.” 

Furthermore, the incumbent City Mayor indicated that he’ll be able to meet all of them after August 14 national primary elections.

Plus, the right-wing PRO party leader assured that his force will now begin the process of deciding which presidential candidate to support in the general elections.

An episode apart is the growing confusion around comments Interior Minister Florencio Randazzo made last night talking to a radio show.

During the conversation, the official praised the election made by the Senator Daniel Filmus, and considered that the ruling party had revalidated its title as the second largest political force within the City. But when confronted with the fact that this time the Victory Front got two percent less votes than those obtained in the 2007 mayoral runoff -that also faced Macri and Filmus- the minister considered that the percentage difference “could be the consequence of the fiercest charge made by certain mass media conglomerates, like Clarín group, against the national government.”

Thus, and misinterpreting Randazzo's statement, journalists told Macri that the Interior Minister said the PRO party’s victory was mostly because of the action of mass media groups.

In that context, Macri replied: “If Randazzo says that, it’s because he doesn’t understand what’s going on. Furthermore, I'd say he does not understand how to do politics in these days. Nowadays politics are based on establishing dialogue and consensus, also recognizing one’s own mistakes and showing tolerance for everybody.”