IT'S MY PARTY - AND I'LL DO WHAT I WANT TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAGUA 000720

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/30/2016
TAGS: KDEM NU PGOV PINR PREL KCOR
SUBJECT: IT'S MY PARTY - AND I'LL DO WHAT I WANT TO

REF: MANAGUA 0709

Classified By: Ambassador Paul A. Trivelli. Reasons 1.4 (B,D).


1. (C) SUMMARY: All is not well on the Liberal
Constitutional Party (PLC) farm, as rivals vie for caudillo
leader/convicted money launderer Arnoldo Aleman's blessing to
run for president on the party ticket. Five of the six PLC
pre-candidates recently confronted Aleman about the PLC
Central Committee proposal to hold 28 regional
"mini-conventions" to vote for the PLC candidate before the
April 2 general convention. PLC deputy/presidential-hopeful
Enrique Quinonez informed polcouns that he would not
participate in the PLC's April 2 convention unless Aleman
cedes and cancels the PLC's March 31 pre-convention, which he
claims is a ruse to anoint competitor Jose Rizo. According
to Quinonez, Aleman and his cronies have already drawn up
documents with the decisions of departmental representatives
selecting Jose Rizo as the winner of the March 31 event.
Under pressure, Aleman conceded that the March 31
mini-conventions will be held under secret ballot. Now all
pre-candidates but Noel Ramirez are back aboard and will
participate. Until recently, Quinonez was one of Aleman's
cronies and a fervent supporter and he may remain so if the
wind blows again in his favor. Nonetheless, the fact that
Quinonez recognizes that Montealegre may be the best option
to beat Ortega is significant even though an eventual
political association with Quinonez could more likely hurt
than help, Montealegre. END SUMMARY.

CHANGES IN RULES OF THE GAME FORCE CANDIDATES TO CONFRONT
ALEMAN
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2. (U) Five of the six PLC pre-candidates schlepped to El
Chile on March 27 to confront Aleman about the PLC Central
Committee proposal to hold 28 regional "mini-conventions" to
vote for the PLC candidate before the April 2 general
convention. Pre-candidate Enrique Quinonez publicly repeated
his assertion that the candidate should be chosen, as
originally decided by the CEN, via a secret vote at the
general convention to guarantee a "transparent process" and
avoid the dedazo of Aleman. On March 28, Noel Ramirez
announced the withdrawal of his candidacy, characterizing the
CEN's decision as "legal, but not legitimate." Also on March
28, pre-candidate Francisco Aguirre Sacasa advised that he
will withdraw his candidacy unless the PLC cancels its March
31 event. Only front-runner Jose Rizo has not complained,
which has prompted more speculation that he is Aleman's
"chosen one."


3. (C) PLC deputy, presidential-hopeful Enrique Quinonez
informed polcouns March 28 that he will not participate in
the PLC's April 2 convention unless Aleman cedes and
eliminates the March 31 "mini-convention," which Quinonez
claimed is a ruse to anoint Jose Rizo. According to
Quinonez, who maintains he enjoys considerable support at the
departmental level, Aleman and his cronies have already drawn
up documents with the decisions of departmental
representatives selecting Jose Rizo as the winner of the
March 31 event. He also complained that the PLC has added
some additional 200 conventioneers to the mix, for a total of
726, probably to stack the votes in the departments. (Note:
Aguirre publicly echoed Quinonez' concerns, alleging that
only on March 27 were the names of these 200 additional
conventioneers released, too late to reach out to them for
their support.)


4. (SBU) Quinonez provided polcouns a copy of the letter the
five candidates sent to PLC party president Jorge Castillo
Quant. Signed by pre-candidates Enrique Quinonez, Ramiro
Sacasa, Haroldo Montealegre, Francisco Aguirre and Noel
Ramirez, the letter calls on the PLC to rescind the March 31
departmental pre-conventions and maintain the original
agreement to hold the convention on April 2 under secret
ballot. The signatories warn that they will not participate
in the candidate selection process unless these conditions
are met. The PLC leadership insists it will continue with
the two-stage process, that the March 31 vote will be open or
secret depending on the will of the departmental

SIPDIS
participants, and that if no candidate receives 51 percent of
the votes in the March 31 process, then the conventioneers
will vote in secret for a second round on April 1. (Comment:
Some of our PLC contacts allege that Aleman has promised to
allocate a number of National Assembly seats to department
chiefs in exchange for
their loyalty. Their support for Rizo could be part of the
bargain.)

TIME TO JUMP SHIP?
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5. (C) Quinonez shared that he is considering supporting
Eduardo Montealegre if it will guarantee Daniel Ortega's
defeat. He explained that he now realizes how Montealegre
felt when he was expelled from the PLC and recently told
Montealegre that he shares his frustration with Aleman's
insatiable hold on the PLC to the detriment of the party and
Nicaragua to protect his own skin. Quinonez recounted that
in a March 26 powwow of the PLC presidential-hopefuls at El
Chile, Aleman banged the table and screamed at him after he
questioned the fairness of changing in mid-stream the rules
of the PLC internal primary. "This is my party and I will do
what I (expletive) well please," Aleman reportedly screamed.


6. (C) Polcouns reiterated U.S. opposition to caudillo
leadership, be it Ortega or Aleman, and the fact that we do
not have problems with the PLC as a party, but rather, its
leadership. Further, given the Aleman-Ortega pact, Aleman's
selection of the PLC candidate could be directed by Ortega,
who would certainly favor a weak opponent he could discredit
closer to the November election. Quinonez concurred that
Ortega may have something to do with Aleman's choice and this
could explain the last-minute change in primary procedures to
ensure Rizo will win. Claiming he has always opposed the
Aleman-Ortega pact, Quinonez blamed co-party members Rene
Herrera and Noel Ramirez for serving as intermediaries for
the nefarious pact.

ALEMAN CEDES ON VOTE SECRECY
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7. (U) Responding to the PLC's internal discontent, Aleman
ceded a bit on March 19, agreeing that the March 31
mini-conventions will be held under secret rather than open
vote. He also warned the recalcitrant pre-candidates that
"one must wash dirty laundry at home." Now all
pre-candidates but Noel Ramirez are back aboard and will
participate.

COMMENT
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8. (C) Until recently, Quinonez was one of Aleman's cronies
and a fervent supporter; he may remain so if the wind blows
again in his favor. Nonetheless, the fact that Quinonez
recognizes that Montealegre may be the best option to beat
Ortega is significant. On the other hand, an eventual
political association with Quinonez -- whose reputation as a
thug willing to resort to any tactic to achieve his goals --
could more likely hurt than help, Montealegre.
TRIVELLI