The hasty departure of Elizabeth Gómez Alcorta triggers a wider change in the Cabinet that President Alberto Fernández intends to announce tomorrow. The most relevant name left by the government cast is that of Claudio MoroniMinister of Labor since December 2019, who has been under strong pressure from Kirchnerism for months.
He will join Juan ZabaletaMinister of Social Development, who had already anticipated his intention to return to the Hurlingham administration, where he faces an internal challenge from leaders of La Cámpora.
These two changes will be added to the replacement of Gómez Alcorta, who slammed the door on Thursday in rejection of the operations to evict the Mapuche usurpations in Patagonia, led by the Minister of Security, Hannibal Fernandez. In this regard, the version that the President could place at the head of the Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity spread strongly on Saturday to la portavoz, Gabriela Cerrutti, who already has the rank of minister. Two relevant government officials recognized THE NATION that this is a firm alternative for Fernández and that would imply, in turn, making a “reorganization” in the area of presidential communication.
“Until Monday many things can happen,” warned, however, one of them who showed caution due to the dynamics of the ruling coalition. consulted by this means, Cerrutti said “there is nothing like that” and that “the decisions made by the president will be known on Monday.”
On Friday, meanwhile, after the departure of Gómez Alcorta was made official, the name of Maria Cristina “Marita” Perceval, current official of the Ministry, and very well accepted by Kirchnerism. “Marita would be a great choice,” said an important government source, who highlighted “His enormous preparation on the subject.” Several collaborators maintain that Gómez Alcorta suggested her to succeed her in office when he met with Fernández in Olivos on Thursday to inform him of his resignation, after the President tried to retain her without success.
Since Thursday afternoon, the Government was surprised by a new storm front due to the differences expressed by Gómez Alcorta. That morning the now former official had spoken publicly about what happened in Mascardi and pointed out that there had been “serious violations of human rights”. While the Government itself lowered the tone of their criticisms (they maintained that they were questions “of Justice”), Gómez Alcorta addressed Olivos to notify the president that he would not continue in office. Almost simultaneously, at a press conference, Cerruti herself denied that there were going to be cabinet changes.
The Minister of Labor has been harshly questioned by Kirchnerism, which early on inscribed him on the list of “officials who do not work” along with other colleagues who are no longer in the Cabinet, such as Marcela Losardo y Matias Kulfas.
The name of Sergio Palazzo, the general secretary of La Bancaria and a pro-government deputy, continues to circulate among the possible replacements for Moroni, whose figure was worn out after the prolonged conflict in the tire union, which was about to paralyze the automotive terminals. After receiving questions from Andres Larroquea regular spokesman for Kirchnerism, Moroni was nervous in his presentation before the Budget Committee of the Chamber of Deputies.
In the middle of the discussion about the 2023 Budget, Moroni maintained that his management has a “record of approved collective agreements”, while receiving a barrage from the leftist deputies –Myriam BregmanNicolas del Caño and Romina del Pla– and Kirchnerism did not really make an effort to defend it. On the contrary, Deputy Palazzo asked for the floor only to declare himself in favor of “a shorter working day, without a reduction in wages.”
In this framework, it did not go unnoticed that Moroni affirmed that it is difficult to recover salaries with the current level of inflation -which was interpreted as a shot by elevation against another sector of the Government- and that he assured, in the same statement, that the employees In a dependency relationship, they only lost “three real points” of purchasing power during their administration, in a global context of pandemic and war. “We have a severe inflation problem,” he said.
But the line that Kirchnerism lowers does not heed Moroni’s explanations. The Buenos Aires Minister of Labor, Walter Correa, differed from its national counterpart by insisting on the need for a fixed sum to be granted by decree, regardless of the parity due to the acceleration of inflation. He then targeted Moroni for the Sutna pay fight. “The spirit is that in a conflict with an employer you have to take part and be with the weakest,” he warned.
THE NATION