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2 Political history 3 See also 4 External Links |
Education
Roselló attended high school at Academia del Perpetuo Socorro in Miramar, a suburb of San Juan. Later he went to medical school and became a pediatric surgeon. Rosselló resided in New York, where he taught at Cambridge University.
Political history
While governor, Rosselló concentrated on trying to attract international investment in Puerto Rico and launched a anti-crime campaign known as "Mano Dura Contra el Crimen" ("Heavy handed towards crime") in which the United States National Guard was used to assist state police. His administration was characterized by launching large construction projects which included a light-rail train system and a massive aqueduct which linked two mayor water reservoirs. His policies also included a push toward privatization of some public entities. He made a number of economic and social changes in Puerto Rico, which lead to dropping unemployment rates from nearly 20% to 9.2%, and implementing multi-sectorial initiatives that stimulated the economy.
Under his administration a Health Care reform was approved. He lead two campaigns for Puerto Rican statehood in 1993 and 1998 in which plebiscites where held to consult the Puerto Rican public on the political status with the United States. The current Commonwealth formula prevailed on both consultations by a slight margin.
Roselló won a second term as Governor in 1996 defeating PPD candidate Hector Luis Acevedo and PIP candidate David Noriega.
In 1998, the sale of the state-owned Puerto Rico Telephone Company (PRTC) to GTE led to a general strike organized by labor unions. A similar attempt to privatize PRTC, under then Governor Rafael Hernandez Colon, led to a similar strike which aborted the sale. Under his administration, the sale proceeded.
Although, his last term was marred by accusations and the convictions of some members of his administration on corruption charges, Roselló was never implicated nor accussed. Still, he decided not to seek the office of Governor for a third in the 2000 elections. After the 2000 elections, he moved to Virginia and continued teaching.
He still remains a potent yet controvertible figure in Puerto Rican politics. In 2003 he returned to politics and overwhelmingly won his party's primary nomination against Carlos Pesquera. Currently Roselló plans to run again in 2004 for the post of Governor.
See also
External Links