if alive

Five months later, the members of the mission were still discussing the per diem.

The most controversial proposal had been that of paying one-thousand-two-hundred euros per day to the members of the Legislative, one thousand to the members of the Executive and eight-hundred to the members of the Judiciary.

The Judiciary threatened with a lawsuit for pay-discrimination.

Every morning, and sometimes in the afternoon, President De Susa would talk to television and to newspapers about the progress of the investigation. So far the developments were the following:

-Peter Throw had been seen many months ago in Luján pushing a donkey.
-A boy, who had helped him,  provided the information that the donkey was called Castro.
-The donkey stationed at the door denounced his presence weeks later at the Central Post Office in Tukuman.
-The records there would show that a parcel sent from Matosinhos, Portugal, had been delivered to a certain Zé De Almeida, most likely an alias used by him.
-He was last seen five months ago walking with Castro northeast of Tukuman entering the Latin-America Jungle.

In one of his daily reports to the Press - some were about the weather in Buenos Aires - President de Susa informed the World that, according to his generals, in the Latin-American Jungle not even reconnaissance planes would work. And a team of statisticians from INE in Lisbon had estimated that at a donkey's pace, if alive, Peter Throw and Castro would not get out of the Jungle in less than eighteen months.

Meanwhile, from S. Bento, prime-minister Tony Coast and his finance minister were putting pressure on the mission to finish the work because of the deficit. The financial watchdog of the European Union was already looking at the matter. In the 137th day of discussions, a session lasting until three o'clock in the morning, the members of the mission finally approved by acclamation a per diem of one-thousand euros, equal for everybody.