Scandal Over Irregular Financing of Foundations: Calls for Cabinet Change and Opposition Criticism

2023-07-07 05:06:52

Deputies from the UDI and –to a lesser extent– from the RN press for the withdrawal of both State Secretaries, following the scandal over the irregular financing of foundations. Meanwhile, from the Government they deny changes in the cabinet and seek to limit opposition criticism. The opposition demands clarity in the responsibilities, but with different decibels. Meanwhile, the Executive reorganized its spokespersons regarding this issue, leaving Ministers Cordero and Vallejo in the front line.

From the Chamber of Deputies, all possible obstacles. We need a signal to be given that this was a scandal at the political level”. The sign requested by the author of that sentence, Deputy Jorge Alessandri (UDI), It is the departure of the Minister of Housing, Carlos Montes, or that of Social Development, Giorgio Jackson. He even said that at this point they might both go out. RN deputies, for their part, are also pressing to materialize “the gesture”, although they warn that they will not condition the work in Congress. Meanwhile, from the Government they chose to put a cap on opposition criticism, which was verbalized yesterday by the spokesperson minister Camila Vallejo, who was categorical in pointing out that “no cabinet change”.

The deputy Alessandri arrived yesterday at the Palacio de La Moneda together with the deputy Camila Flores (RN) and the mayoress of Providencia, Evelyn Matthewto deliver a letter to the President Gabriel Boric, in which they ask that the security agenda be prioritized. It was there when the parliamentarian raised the idea of ​​conditioning the legislative agenda and putting “all the obstacles”.

By the way, the idea of ​​a possible change of cabinet had been installed very early in the morning, from the ruling party itself, because –in conversation with the ‘Central Table’ of T13– the leader of the PC, lautaro carmonaexpressed his expectation that “in the coming hours all the details will be reached, because here there is no possibility that the responsibilities of those who were aware of the facts or not are not specified, of those who delayed transferring these observations to the institutional spaces that corresponded to them to know them to take measures”.

Hours later, in the corridors of the Government House, Carmona assured that the interview had another subject and that what he answered was a marginal question, which was taken out of context. The communist retorted, warning that he hopes that what happened with the money will be clarified and that, in the event of opting for a change in the ministerial team, he has “open and known channels and I think it would be irrelevant if one were to raise this debate by the media, by the press.”

Despite his explanations, the issue of the change of cabinet and the ministers Montes and Jackson managed to settle in La Moneda. The president of Commons, Marco Velarde, responded to the opposition arguing that “it does not help when a minister is asked in the head” and described such a request as “very opportunistic.” Likewise, he maintained that the problem of the foundations “is not going to be solved by the fact that a minister leaves, especially when there are ministers who are doing well, for example, Minister Montes with the housing emergency.”

The head of the General Secretariat of the Presidency, alvaro elizalde, was also approached and indicated that he understood that Carmona’s statements were taken out of context, but in any case he referred to the rumors of changes in the cabinet: “You have to be very serious and responsible. The ministers, particularly Minister Montes, have led a series of initiatives in order to fully clarify the facts.” Thus, he maintained that “trying to transform this into a debate with a certain partisan logic does not contribute to what is relevant.”

Montes, for his part, as he left the Palace through the door that leads to the Plaza de la Constitución, stated that he had no history of ministerial adjustments. Hours before, when he entered La Moneda, he had said that he was not going to resign.

The polyphony inside the seat of Government forced Minister Vallejo to make a spokesperson to clarify the panorama from the top: “We have discussed this with the President and I want to be extremely clear and blunt: there is no change of cabinet”. In addition, within La Moneda they confirm that the issues related to the Democracia Viva case will be supervised and informed through the same spokeswoman or the Minister of Justice, Louis Cordero, determination that goes once morest what the opposition evaluates.

Mayor Matthei said –in an interview with Mega– that Minister Jackson “is burned“Well, your party (RD)”has proven to be disgustingalong with adding that “he at least has to go, he has nothing to do in the government“.

Chile Let’s go, one decibel less

The president of National Renewal (RN), Senator Francisco Chahuansaid for his part that the management of the crisis is in the figure of President Boric and that he has in his hands “the credibility of the political system, the credibility of the political actors, and here it will be the Government itself that must take a decision on the matter”.

In addition, he assured that the RN deputies are called to evaluate all control measures, among them, “a question to the two ministers in question and then, of course, to evaluate the arguments.” Likewise, he specified that this controversy “is not regarding the departure of a minister or an undersecretary”, but that “of the public resources of all Chileans and reach the final consequences, whoever falls“.

The head of the RN bench of deputies, Frank Sauerbaum, also made a difference with respect to his UDI colleague Felipe Alessandri, since he is open to “voting and carrying out initiatives that do good for the country.” In this sense, Sauerbaum pointed out that “a different thing is the legislative agenda” and that the strategy of conditioning the Government may not be effective. This, because said agenda “is quite weak in Congress and there are few projects that might be conditioned,” said the parliamentarian.

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