The president-elect Jose Mujica and Danilo Astori, met on Tuesday with a delegation of the Joint Technical Commission of Salto Grande and investors interested in doing business in Uruguay. He also clarified his invitation to Maradona. 

Upon leaving the meeting, Mujica referred to the invitation made to Diego Maradona to participate in a campaign against drugs. The future president played down the significance of the impact caused by his initiative that the Argentine footballer talks to youth about addiction.

"What happened is that while Maradona was in South Africa, at a dinner at the Embassy of Uruguay, he called me by phone, greeted me, I greeted him and said, 'after the World Cup happens maybe I ask you  to come to greet the children'. The facts were these. There is no commitment or anything like that. Kids feel called by sporting idols is not a question to find either end, everything is strange, everything is difficult."

Meanwhile, Vice President-elect Danilo Astori said that a group of investors met on Tuesday afternoon at the headquarters of the Frente Amplio represented by former director Eduardo Zaindesztat Tax. "Interesting Proposal for Uruguay, because we remain a focus of interest of investment, 2010 will be a year of growth and for that we are very happy."

Zaindesztat - who at the beginning of the administration of Tabaré Vázquez emerged as a staunch fighter against the media and tax evasion in the country - is now devoted exclusively to private, more precisely to business consultancy.

(www.observa.com.uy and www.espectador.com, 27 January 2010)