Political commentator Orlando Gil dedicates his column in today’s Listin Diario to analyzing whether or not former President Hipolito Mejia is a jinx. He comments on the perception that has mainly circulated by word of mouth and on several internet forums about how the DR lost to Puerto Rico, not because Puerto Rico played better, but because the former President was seated in the stands. He mentions that several online publications experienced record interactivity as fans commented that after an ESPN commentator pointed out that the former President was watching the game Sunday evening in Puerto Rico, everything went downhill. “When he was President, he would disqualify his adversaries calling them “azarosos” (bad omens), and now the name is being applied to him,” writes Gil.
He mentions there is a precedent. In 2005, the DR was the favorite to win the Caribbean Series in Mexico. But the former President traveled to Mexico to watch the team, and the results were disastrous for the country.