León Febres Cordero

León Esteban Febres-Cordero Ribadeneyra (9 March 1931 – 15 December 2008) was an Ecuadorian politician. He served as President of Ecuador from 1984 to 1988.

León Febres-Cordero
León Febres Cordero.jpg
Febres-Cordero in 1985
President of Ecuador
In office
10 August 1984 – 10 August 1988
Preceded byOsvaldo Hurtado
Succeeded byRodrigo Borja Cevallos
Mayor of Guayaquil
In office
August 10, 1992 – August 10, 2000
Preceded byHarry Soria Lamán
Succeeded byJaime Nebot
Personal details
Born(1931-03-09)9 March 1931
Guayaquil, Ecuador
Died15 December 2008(2008-12-15) (aged 77)
Guayaquil, Ecuador
Resting placeParques de la Paz, Guayaquil
Political partySocial Christian Party
Signature

Early life

Cordero was born León Esteban Febres-Cordero Ribadeneyra on 9 March 1931 in Guayaquil, Ecuador. He studied at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. Cordero married María Eugenia Cordovez in 1958. Their marriage would last until his death in 2008.

Presidency

 
Cordero and Manuel Félix López at a meeting, 1985

He was known in the Ecuadorian media as LFC or by his surname (Febres-Cordero). He was President of Ecuador of Ecuador for a four-year term. He was inaugurated on 10 August 1984. He succeeded Osvaldo Hurtado. During his Presidency he sought to introduce market-oriented reforms, and also led a security crackdown on a guerilla group, ¡Alfaro Vive, Carajo!.[1][2] He was known for being a close ally to President of the United States Ronald Reagan.

In 1987 Febres Cordero was kidnapped for 11 hours[3] by members of the air force demanding the freedom of General Frank Vargas Pazzos, who had been imprisoned after leading two uprisings in March 1986, aimed at toppling the Minister of Defense.

Congress approved a resolution granting Vargas amnesty, but Febres Cordero refused to publish the resolution, thus denying it the force of law. It was only after his January 1987 kidnapping that he signed the amnesty and released Vargas.[4]

Cordero's presidency ended in 10 August 1988. He was succeeded by Rodrigo Borja Cevallos.

Mayor of Guayaquil

Shortly after his presidency, Cordero became Mayor of Guayaquil. He was inaugurated on 10 August 1992. Cordero succeeded Harry Soria Lamán. His term would last until his retirement in 10 August 2000. He was succeeded by Jaime Nebot.

Personal life

Cordero lived in Guayaquil. He had four children with his wife of fifty years. Cordero was a smoker. He made many visits to the United States and Columbia. He once met with Ronald Reagan to discus foreign relations.

Death

Cordero died on 15 December 2008 in Guayaquil, Ecuador from lung cancer and emphysema, aged 77.

References

Other websites