Scandals and More Scandals!
The biggest scandal to date is the multimillion dollar credit loan from Finland to the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) by way of the Corporación Fischel, dudded the Fischel-Caja scandal, that has seen the ugly side of Costa Rican public functionaries and politicians.

While the investigation into the diversion of some US$8.000.000 was that paid to the Corporación Fischel, who in turn paid commissions to public functionaries, including former Costa Rican president Rafael Angel Calderón.

To date, three persons are in jail in preventive detention waiting out the investigation: Walter Reiche Fischel, president of the Corporación Fischel and company lawyer, Randall Vargas and Eliseo Vargas, former president of the CCSS.

Former Fischel manager, Marvin Barrantes, and former Calderón law firm partner, Gerardo Bolaños are under house arrest. Calderón and Emilio Bruce, president of the Fischel board of directors are impeded from leaving the country, while authorities investigate the extent of their involvement.

Calderón, last week, deposited with the courts US$522.500, an amount equal to the payments he and his cousin received from Reiche through Panamanian companies with respect to the Finnish loan. Calderón's share was $442.500.

Calderón insists that the re-payment is not an admission of guilt, rather, he wants to demonstrate his willingness to co-operate and will let the courts decide who the money belongs to if he is not legally entitled to it.

The Fiscal General, Franciso Dall'anese told the press following the repayment, that this (the repayment) changes nothing for Calderón and the investigation.

The Fischel-Caja scandal appears to have opened the proverbial "Pandora's Box".

"Spanish Loan" Being Questioned
Yesterday, Channel 7 news "Telenoticias" reported that some in the medical profession are now asking authorities to investigate the US$40 million dollar loan by the Banco Bilbao Vizcaya and the government of Spain.

Many heads of departments at several public hospitals have complained about problems with the equipment purchased with the Spanish loan.

Doctors at the Hospital México as well as the Hospital San Juan de Dios have complained that they were not asked them their opinion on the type of medical equipment their hospital needed and the equipment that was installed, and that they had problems with the equipment functioning properly.

According to the Telenoticias reports, Dr. Longito Soto, a surgeon at Ophtalmology is complaining that "it was a long and bitter experience. Nothing came for a long time and then we were never asked what we needed...".

Another doctor, Dr. Dorado, tells the story at Ophtalmology at the Ophtalmology where the equipment received by the hospital was faulty, of poor quality and broke down easily and not due to abuse.

The news channel included many other similar stories told by doctors at various CCSS hospitals about the equipment purchased with the Spanish loan.

The scandals are limited solely with the medical sector and the CCSS.

ALCATEL Contract Payoffs
A report by the daily Spanish newspaper La Nación yesterday told the story of how the wife of former Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) - the state owned monopoly on telecommunication and power - José Antonio Lobo, received US$2.400.000 dollars from ALCATEL, the French firm that was awarded the contract to install GSM service in Costa Rica.

According to the La Nación, the money was transferred from an account held by Jean Philp Gallup and paid to the wife of the former ICE director.

La Nación says it has banking documents to back up it's claim, as well as other banking documents that shows a transfer of US$1.200.000 dollars paid to Bosques del Olimpo, held by another former ICE director, Joaquín Alberto Fernández Alfaro. Again, the transfer came from ALCATEL. Fernández received US$26.000 personally.

The transfers were made from the Cuscatlán International Bank in the Bahamas from an account held by Servicios Notariales Q. C.

That account, according to the banking documents, had received deposits in March, June and October of 2003, for a total of US$9.600.000 dollars, all coming from the Alcatel CIT en el Banco ABN Amro, in New York.

La Nación was able to confirm that ALCATEL and Servicios Notariales Q. C. signed a contract to bid on the public tender for GSM service in Costa Rica.

The La Nación report says that Luis Fishman, second vice president of Costa Rica, confirmed that he received US$100.000 from ALCATEL as a contribution to President Abel Pacheco's political campaign.

Fishman told La Nación that he co-ordinated the arrival of the funds with Luis Gabriel Castro, who is president of the Porter Novelli company.

Castro admitted to La Nación reporters that he did meet with the manager of ALCATEL and Pacheco at Fishman's house, however, he could not recall if the political contribution was ever completed.

The Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) awared the French telecommunications giant, ALCATEL, a contract for US$258.000.000 dollars over the past three years.

In August of 2001, ALCATEL was awarded the contract to install 400.000 GSM cellular telephone lines, in a contract that was worth US$149.000.000 dollars.

According to Pablo Cob, president of ICE, ALCATEl was awarded another contract in May of 2002 to install a fixed line telephone station in a contract valued at US$109.000.000 dollars.

According to Cob, José Antonio Lobo and Joaquín Alberto Fernández, were members of the board of directors that approved the ALCATEL contracts.