GUATAMALA: Oscar Berger, a wealthy landowner with ties to the military, was declared president-elect of Guatemala yesterday after a second round run-off poll marked by high abstention.
Mr Berger secured 56 per cent of the ballots cast, giving him a comfortable victory over his rival Alvaro Colom. "Today we set aside our party colours and begin to work for all Guatemalans," said Mr Berger (57).
He promised immediately to appoint "an austere, honest team" of advisers to tackle Guatemala's corrupt, political system which has lost the trust of the people. An estimated 56 per cent of eligible voters opted to abstain rather than cast a vote in Sunday's ballot, a tendency highest among the nation's disaffected indigenous majority.
Guatemala's Nobel Peace prize-winner Rigoberta Menchu, a Maya Indian, was invited to join Mr Berger's cabinet, but refused the offer. "I will work instead from an independent position on behalf of the Mayan people," she said.
Some 80 per cent of Guatemala's 11.2 million people live in poverty. While business people rarely pay tax, the minimum wage is just US$100 a month.
"The new president's greatest immediate challenge will be to tackle a virtual famine which has gripped dozens of rural districts," said political analyst Víctor Ferrigno.
Mr Berger, a former mayor of Guatemala City, was defeated in a previous run-off vote by President Alfonso Portillo. After a landslide victory five years ago, Mr Portillo's party lost its congressional majority amidst widespread claims of corruption.
Mr Berger has promised to stimulate foreign investment and create jobs, while maintaining a tight grip on public finances: "We don't want to spend more than what's necessary, investing in public health and public safety," he said.
The incoming president will face a growing clamour to bring Gen Rios Montt to justice on genocide charges arising from the former dictator's scorched earth campaign which destroyed 440 Indian villages in 1982-83.
The former military ruler will lose his parliamentary immunity on January 14th, when he has to give up his seat as a member of Guatemala's Congress.
Mr Berger's Grand National Alliance, a conservative business coalition, has promised to fight crime, strengthen the rule of law and improve living standards in a country plagued by poverty and unemployment.