Word: samper
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...year has passed since president Ernesto Samper Pizano of Colombia was first accused of taking millions of dollars for his 1994 presidential campaign from the cocaine-rich Rodriguez brothers of Cali--time enough for him to emerge as a strong and conscientious leader. A poll two weeks ago by Semana magazine gave Samper a 63% approval rating. Last week, however, all that trust came unraveled. Explosive allegations by a former close aide implicated Samper more forcefully than ever, and brought the survival of his presidency into doubt...
...first victim of last week's political storm was Defense Minister Fernando Botero Zea, 39, who resigned amid accusations that he had received almost $6 million in contributions from the Cali cartel when he was Samper's campaign manager. Botero's accuser was Santiago Medina, campaign treasurer, who was arrested two weeks ago after a police raid turned up a check made out to him by a cartel front company...
Medina, under questioning by investigators for Colombia's independent chief prosecutor, Alfonso Valdivieso, not only gave up Botero but also claimed that the dirty money was raised with Samper's full knowledge...
...Samper, 45, said he would answer Medina's charges "one by one." Botero--whose father Fernando Botero Angulo is Colombia's most famous painter--also denied the accusations, saying he only stepped down so he could devote time to preparing his defense. "I cannot prolong a situation in which my personal integrity and my family's honor are questioned," he said...
Then last March, the U.S. State Department accused the government of Colombian President Ernesto Samper Pizano of lacking the political will to go after Cali's bosses. Though the State Department stopped short of suggesting that the U.S. cut off aid to Colombia and veto loans from institutions such as the World Bank, the rebuke apparently rocked Samper, whose presidential campaign was alleged to have been partly financed by the cartel...