Nakayama criticizes Santiago Peña for turning agricultural event into party political rally

Paraguayan opposition Senator Eduardo Nakayama said President Santiago Peña was “totally out of place” when he turned a soybean-sector ceremony into a political speech.

Peña attended Thursday’s symbolic event marking the start of soybean planting in J. Eulogio Estigarribia, in Caaguazú Department. The ceremony was organized by the Association of Soybean, Oilseed and Cereal Producers and was not intended to carry a political message, Nakayama said.

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National interests transcend political parties, and production is one of them.

Speaking to ABC Cardinal, Nakayama said national interests such as production should transcend political parties. He stressed that he had not been part of the presidential delegation and had been invited by the producers’ association long before the event.

“I don’t think that, at an event like this, which was not organized by the government, partisan or electoral issues should be brought in. I found it very distasteful on the president’s part,” Nakayama said. He also questioned who advised Peña and called the speech inappropriate for a productive-sector gathering.

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I don’t think that, at an event like this, which was not organized by the government, partisan or electoral issues should be brought in. I found it very distasteful on the president’s part.

Reports said Peña attacked critics of his government during the event. “While many prefer to hide behind a microphone, behind the press’s ink or in the stands shouting, we will be on the field. Getting dirty, sweating and, if we have to bleed, we will bleed too, because we will give our lives for the Paraguayan people,” the president said. He added that public officials had earned their positions through representative democracy and challenged anyone seeking office to compete in an election.

Residents reportedly confronted Peña during the same event. They protested the absence of a dedicated Social Security Institute facility in J. Eulogio Estigarribia, an industrial and agricultural center with about 3,000 insured residents.

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While many prefer to hide behind a microphone, behind the press’s ink or in the stands shouting, we will be on the field. Getting dirty, sweating and, if we have to bleed, we will bleed too, because we will give our lives for the Paraguayan people.