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 Entertainment | Books | April 2005 
New Book Probes Wealth Of Sahagún
 El Universal
| | The children from the First Lady's former marriage also come under scrutiny in the volume. |
The sudden wealth amassed by the children of Mexico's first lady is the subject of a new book by Argentine journalist Olga Wornat, who examines a fortune that has been growing via alleged influence peddling.
Excerpts from the book, "Cronicas Malditas," published in the weekly Proceso detail the waste and arrogance of the children from the first marriage of Marta Sahagún the wife of President Vicente Fox since 2001. It also paints an unflattering portrait of her exhusband, Manuel Bribiesca.
Wornat, who wrote a bestselling unauthorized biography of Sahagún titled "La jefa" (The Boss Lady), puts the spotlight on a different aspect of the life of the controversial first lady, who has amassed great power.
According to the book, the first lady's children have become millionaires in the past two years by using their influence to get public-works contracts.
"All the sources consulted, which I am not going to reveal at their request and by professional rights, confirm what I write here. And when I say sources, I mean high-level officials, advisers federal and state , businessmen and suppliers," Wornat writes in her book.
In a chapter about the first lady's children, the Argentine journalist profiles Sahagún's eldest son, Manuel Bribiesca Sahagún, whom she describes as "arrogant and violent, addicted to money, bright colors, flashy suits and Versace and Dolce Gabbana shirts."
Wornat notes that in his work as a builder, Bribiesca Sahagún buys land and constructs buildings everywhere, leading many to say that he is the new "owner" of the country.
Bribiesca travels in his new private plane, "a Lear Jet ... in which he flies in and out of Mexico, skipping the tiresome immigration procedures that average citizens have to endure."
The writer says the "acquisition of the plane, today registered to a corporation, Credicor Mexicano Arrendadora, occurred after it was made public that the kids were using presidential aircraft on their countless travels to Houston and Las Vegas."
Sahagún's staff denied the charges contained in Wornat's book.
In a communiqué, the first lady's office said: "One more time speculations appear based on remarks from people who do not show their faces, on unsubstantiated rumors and on baseless accusations."
"This is not constructive, it is confusing and destructive. With this conviction, we categorically reject what has been published in recent days regarding Mrs. Marta de Fox and her children," the statement concluded. |
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