The president José Jerí is once again at the center of public debate after a recent interview in which he spoke about his management and the questions that have accompanied him since before coming to power. But one of the things that has caught the most attention has been a phrase about his taste in women.
When he was questioned about the nickname they gave him when he came to power and discovered that as soon as he assumed the Presidency, he eliminated many girls on social networks, the president stated: “My greatest concentration now is not women. Not because I don’t like them, obviously I like them, it’s proven. I now have a sense of priority and have committed myself to fighting crime. “I’m eating the fight.”
Jerí also revealed that during the most critical moments of the protests he never thought about resigning. “No, never. I had already assumed and it would have been very irresponsible to decline. When I make a decision, I go to the end. I have always been like that, but much more so because of what happened to me. That complaint was a cut in my personality,” he said, making direct reference to the accusation he faced for sexual abuse.
The president noted that this complaint (which was later filed) “was a turning point. It made my will and my strength to move forward much stronger. When they stone you or impose a narrative that is not yours, you get more courage and more strength to defend honor. If all this had happened a year and a half ago, perhaps you would not find a José Jerí as you are seeing him now. It would have been different, weaker surely.”
When asked if the accusations affected him, he replied that he would not have the nerve to take the reins of the country.
“I always reflect a lot. One must never stop losing the citizen’s perspective, because before any function we are citizens. We have to see ourselves from the outside. When everything happened I started to think: is there merit or no merit in what they say? Are they right or are they simply using an issue that is legally settled as a political weapon to discredit me? If there was only one true reason, believe me, I would not have the nerve to be in charge of the country. Legally it was proven that I never had anything to do with it and today it is a political issue used to get me down.
Asked how he would like to be remembered at the end of his mandate, Jerí assured that his legacy will be marked by his first actions in citizen security. “There are first actions that have been taken in the field of citizen security. They will not remember me as someone who did nothing, quite the opposite. My main objective is to restore peace of mind to the citizens. It will not be 100%, but I am going to try. Returning the feeling to the country that there is an authority is enough.”
Finally, the president insisted that he is working to recover the image of the Executive. “What I can offer is that day by day I will do the impossible so that the perception of the Presidency changes. I want to return honor to this institution; citizens have to believe in their authorities again.” And when asked about the comparisons with President Bukele, he responded bluntly: “It doesn’t bother me, but at no time have I tried to imitate him.”
