Xavier Emilio Ledesma Ginatta
Who is Xavier Ledesma?
Xavier Ledesma was appointed as Ecuador's interior minister on 22 February, following the resignation of Jaime
Damerval.
Why watch him?
Ledesma is the fifth person to occupy the demanding post of interior minister in the Gutiérrez government. His key role will be in sustaining the government's wafer-thin majority in congress, by building whichever alliances are necessary to allow the administration to continue its ambitious reforms. Previously minister of the presidency, Ledesma gained a reputation as a fixer because of his skill in securing the support of the parties that form the present pro-government majority. Oscar Ayerve, known to the opposition as the president's “bag man", takes over Ledesma's former position.
Age: 56
Place of Birth: Guayaquil.
Public Life:
Xavier Ledesma is married with three children. During his political career he has been elected as a congressman three times; twice for the Izquierda Democrática and once for the Unidad Republicana. He was even interior minister once before, in 1995, in the government of President Sixto Durán-Ballén. In 2003 he became President Lucio Gutiérrez's minister of the presidency.
Educated: He studied at the Colegio Javier in Guayaquil and at St. Anthony's school in the UK, eventually graduating in social and political sciences from the Universidad Católica de Guayaquil.
Timeline
1972: Secretary-general of the municipality of Guayaquil.
1974: Co-ordinator in the ministry of social welfare.
1979-1984: Legislator for the Izquierda Democrática in Guyas province.
1981: President of the labour and social commission in congress.
1983: National director of the Izquierda Democrática.
1992-1995: Legislator for the Unidad Republicana in Guayas province.
1995: Interior minister in the government of President Sixto Durán-Ballén.
2003: Minister of the presidency
Strengths
Ledesma is an experienced politician with good cross-party contacts. He appears more of a technocrat than an ideologue, which should serve him well in Ecuador's fractious political environment. Commentators consider him an astute political analyst, who has won the confidence of President Gutiérrez thanks to his good judgement. An introverted character, he prefers working behind closed doors to giving expansive press conferences.
Weaknesses
The fact that he is the fifth interior minister of the Gutiérrez administration demonstrates the difficulty of the office. Ledesma's quiet manner as minister of the presidency had led many to believe that his political star was on the wane, though one of the reasons for his low profile was due to health problems. According to the rumours emanating from Carondolet, the presidential palace, President Gutiérrez had trouble persuading him to take up the position.
Prospects
Damerval, who is credited with dividing an opposition bloc that sought to impeach the president, may prove a hard act to follow. Already, Ledesma has had to face some tough questions over stories in the press about the use of US and Israeli intelligence officers to monitor the activities of the political opposition. This development comes on top of the fact that congress is still up in arms over the government's stacking of the supreme court and some of the more feisty opposition legislators are even threatening to set up a congress-in-exile. The pro-government's majority is slight and unlikely to survive in its current composition for much longer. Ledesma has shown himself to be a canny political operator, but he will need all his skills of building cross-party alliances to keep the Gutiérrez administration afloat.