How's this as a man of the people: The president of Uruguay, José Mujica, has earned a nickname, "el presidente mas pobre" (translation: "poorest president").
The 77-year-old recently admitted to the Spanish newspaper El Mundo
that he donates almost all of his presidential salary, making him the
poorest, or, as Univision pointed out, most generous president, in the
world.
El presidente explained he
receives $12,500 a month but keeps only $1,250. The public servant told
the newspaper, "I do fine with that amount; I have to do fine because
there are many Uruguayans who live with much less."
He and his wife—a senator who
also donates part of her salary—live in a farmhouse in Montevideo. His
biggest expense is his Volkswagen Beetle, valued at $1,945.
Perhaps not surprisingly, under
the former guerrilla fighter, who was elected in 2010 as a member of the
left-wing coalition, the Broad Front, the country has become known for
being one of the least corrupt on the continent.
Mujica has no bank accounts and no debt, and he enjoys one thing money can't buy: the companionship of his dog, Manuela.
The Uruguayan is not the first president to donate his salary.
U.S. President John F. Kennedy, who came from wealth, donated his
salary when in office, as did President Herbert Hoover. Hoover, who grew
up poor, decided to never accept money for public service, so he could
not be accused of corruption.
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