Millionaire, golf, jacuzzi and planes of the world: the path of Evo Morales from socialism to luxury

He is the politician with more years in the presidency of the history of Bolivia. He came to power in the name of socialism, with the votes that gave him the new story of being the first indigenous to aspire to occupy the presidential chair in order to free the popular majorities of an oligarchy subject to the rule of law. American imperialism. 14 years later, behind was the image of the humble Aymara who had caused a sensation with his striped woolen sweater during his first foray into European territory as head of the Bolivian state.

Evo Morales Ayma is no longer the union leader who listened to the World Cup matches on a radio transmitter with his comrades in Chapare, one of the major coca producing regions. Now, travel in the Falcon 900 EX EASY aircraft, originally made for the Manchester United club, to watch the inaugural matches of major football tournaments. Although the Bolivian team does not participate in a World Cup since 1994Evo Morales attended the inauguration of the competitions of South Africa, Brazil and Russia.

Their penchant for this sport has become a routine, their game shows live several times on the public channel. He has formed a team with players from his security organization and has for permanent rivals, when he goes to inaugurate works, former winners of the World Cup led by the legendary Bolivian star. Marco Antonio "El Diablo" Etcheverry.

In his tours around the country, he faced the 10th jersey on the field at the presidents Mauricio Macri, from Argentina, and Sebastián Piñera, from Chile. Fresh is also the image of the party that played with the President of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, that he intends to convince that Bolivia will be a sub-site of the World Cup in 2030, alongside Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. He also had as partners and contenders on the courts Diego Armando Maradona, who offered to be the DT of the Bolivian national team and other former players such as the Spaniard Fernando Hierro, the Brazilian Cafu, the Colombian Faustino Asprilla and the Argentineans Martin Palermo, Pablo Aymar and Diego Latorre.

A mayor of his party, who presided over the Sport Boys club, registered him in 2014 as a league player in the Bolivian league.

But in addition to his pbadion for football, Evo Morales has been revealed in the media as president determined to be in good physical condition. A few weeks ago, he filmed the journalists your routine of 200 sit-ups a day and once he challenged them to hold this practice with him. In the new Casa Grande del Pueblo had a gym, jacuzzi, a mbadage room and a sauna.

Critics of the opposition to their lifestyle, because of the costs they represent, did not prevent the last weekend from appearing in a new facet of sports in the field of The Victoria Golf Club, from the department of Tarija.

Faced with this image conveyed by newspapers and digital media, the former newspaper editor The press and Page sevenMarco Zelaya wrote on his Twitter account: "He has a Falcon plane, he travels by helicopter, and in his palace, he consumes 2,000 bolivianos (nearly $ 300) of meat a day, admires Suleiman and now plays golf. ) gave Bolivia a big capitalist ".

The same journalist extends his critics in a contact with Infobae: "The power has transformed it. Is the opposite of what he preached to come to power. He became addicted to gas revenues. The Evo of Progressive Speech has changed. We now have a developer who has no other model than operating raw materials such as gas and minerals. "

Work in the air, an expensive custom

A little over five years of government had elapsed when negotiations for the direct purchase of the Falcon aircraft that the President of Bolivia used for most of his travels were initiated. $ 38 million.

Four years later, in January 2014, the presidential transport and security of Evo Morales were reinforced by the acquisition via a call for tenders for a vehicle. Armored Lexus and four wagons, for a value close to $ 1 million.

A few weeks ago, the newspaper Time revealed that lately the president is moving between three and six times a day from the presidential residence of San Jorge district, to La Paz, to the helipad of the new Casa Grande del Pueblo, to cover only 4 kilometers, and up to the presidential shed, travel 9 kilometers. The first part covered has a duration of five or six minutes. The aeronautical expert, Saúl Montaño, thus quoted, calculates the cost of an hour of helicopter flight between $ 1,000 and $ 2,000. In a short time, I would spend about $ 250.

Faced with criticism of the expenses incurred by these operations, the president ensures that it is not a luxury to use helicopters in short and long sections. "The helicopter and the presidential plane are a working instrument. It's like for the yoke, the pickaxe, the shovel and the plow, it's for working", said Evo Morales during an event in Cochabamba.

The president, who usually travels every day to deliver works in five out of nine departments in Bolivia, explained that sometimes time was not enough to eat and that he had therefore converted the plane into the bedroom, office or dining room.

Two other ministers justify the use of helicopters. Manuel Canelas, from the Communication Portfolio, questioned the controversy and pointed out that the president uses the fastest means of transport to carry out a program that "it's not a hobby, but a job"

Javier Zavaleta, Minister of Defense, says that Evo Morales does not use ships to party or to walk around. "The government is trying to get the president to reach the last community, the last municipality in the country."

In 2019, the general state budget allocated a total of 20 million bolivianos (about $ 3 million) for the management of the presidential plane

Morales has at his disposal to fly the French Falcon aircraft and two Eurocopter helicopters.

A museum and a palace to your liking

The president, born in Orinoca, a small peasant community of the highlands of only 630 inhabitants, wanted to install in place of his humble ancestral roots modern museum built on nearly 11,000 square meterss, with three blocks, one of which presents more than 13,000 gifts were given to him during his government.

The infrastructure, called the Museum of the Democratic and Cultural Revolution, was built thanks to a loan of 50 million bolivianos (about $ 7 million) and allocate annually 1 million Bolivian $ 150,000). One of the criticisms made by the opponents is that it represents a "personality cult"Evo Morales, and the revenues are well below the operating expenses." During the first year of operation, it was visited only on average by 30 people a day, more than 10,000 in total.

In his line to erase the past and show a before and after in the history of Bolivia after coming to power, the sixth year of his government, Evo Morales, announced the creation of the Great house in the city, replacing the former palace of Quemado, with a government investment of 252.4 million bolivianos (just over $ 42 million). In Three of the 29 floors of the building are located in the meeting room of the President and others as an exclusive dining room and a suite.

In the elevators, there are screens with messages in Chinese and an auditorium for 1,000 people. There were critics of the contrast of the tower with the environment of the surrounding colonial buildings, in addition to the supposed waste of resources.

The president also justified this building, inaugurated last year, claiming that he was saving about $ 20 million that was spent on renting real estate for the operation of at least five departments which are now in the same place.

The tower, which is crowned by a heliport, receives Weekly visits of honeymooners taking pictures in the dome, to reinforce the idea that "this is not an Evo palace, but the city". The ancient burned palace has upset Morales to have what he sees as symbols of the colonial period of Bolivian history. So he decided to turn some of it into a museum.

The opposition has recently criticized the budget line of expenditure in the coming years. Provision of meat at Casa Grande del Pueblo, calculated at 500,000 bolivianos a year (Unos $ 70,000), according to MP Amilcar Barral, who cited a document concerning the public announcement of the State Procurement System (Sicoes).

In this context, and already at the height of the election campaign, Gustavo Pedraza, a former political badyst and current candidate for the vice presidency of Bolivia for the opposition, presented himself in the polls as the main candidate for the election. Evo Morales. Infobae that the president had built a media image of humility and modesty, but that "the power has changed drastically and that he now practices the opposite". He felt, however, that in fact, the Bolivian leader "has always been like that".