At Tuesday morning's cabinet meeting there were two absences.
One, with warning, was that of the Minister of the Interior Guillermo Francos, who had traveled to Salta to celebrate with Governor Gustavo Sáenz the 211th anniversary of the battle of that province.
The other, more surprising, was that of
Sandra Pettovello
, the Minister of Human Capital, who claimed an intense cold and promised to return to normal activity on Wednesday.
Pettovello, however, was working from home and interacting with the headquarters of the Ministry of Human Capital.
The "terrible" cold, as it was described by her entourage, exists and persisted during the afternoon, although there were also frontline sources who confirmed to
Clarín
that
the minister had a crisis on Monday afternoon, before leaving her office, to the point of crying uncontrollably
with his closest advisors and letting them know that he was not going to show up for work on Tuesday.
The minister's crying was the result of a series of tense situations that she had to face in recent weeks, linked to the difficult relationship with social organizations, but also
to short circuits that she had with the Minister of Economy Luis Caputo and with the head of Nicolás Posse Cabinet
.
With the head of Economí,
the differences became noticeable in recent days, following the official decision to adjust key items such as attendance at soup kitchens
, which motivated the picketers' protests to move from the Ministry of Human Capital to the of Economy on Monday.
Although there were also decisions by Caputo that affected another ministry that depends on Pettovello, such as Education, such as not extending the Teacher Incentive Fund (Fonid).
Buenos Aires.
Sandra Pettovello leaves Casa Rosada after the cabinet meeting held this morning.
Photo: Matías Martin Campaya - FTP CLARIN _MMC3659GAB34.jpg Z Guest
Last week
Caputo and Pettovello had a heated argument over the phone
, which added to the obvious differences they had expressed before.
This is stated by three sources consulted by this newspaper who asked to remain confidential, although President Javier Milei, also when asked by
Clarín
, denied that there had been such a discussion.
"Such a thing has not existed," were the five words with which Milei completely denied this short circuit
between his ministers.
"Sandra is not used to this, she is having a hard time and said she wants to resign," was the comment heard among Human Capital officials.
The minister's emotional outburst was such that she notified her collaborators that she was going to announce that decision.
Those who were with her calmed her down and told her to wait for her and that in any case, if she left, to ask for another position in exchange within the Presidency or even a position in an embassy.
Pettovello appeared to be more cheerful in the meeting she had with the Human Capital cabinet at the meeting on Tuesday afternoon, via Zoom.
"She is in a better mood now," those who heard her participate in the virtual meeting were happy.
Wednesday's meeting at Casa Rosada, which the minister is expected to attend, will be key to knowing how her future will continue.
In parallel,
Pettovello would have received criticism from Nicolás Posse
for a trip he made to Punta del Este over the long weekend.
"Have a good time in Punta del Este," was the alleged comment with which the Chief of Staff harassed her before she traveled, according to the site La Política Online.
The minister had not informed that she was going to travel to Uruguay, but at Milei's small table they had found out.
The Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo.Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
There had already been tensions with Posse at the beginning of January, when he and Federico Sturzenegger, advisor to the President, decided to transfer the position to Horacio Pitrau, the undersecretary of Labor, a key area that also depends on Pettovello.
Pettovello has Milei's full support, executive sources say, and
cultivates a very good relationship with the Secretary of the Presidency, Karina Milei
.
"I don't think Javier will give it up so easily," said a libertarian leader who knows the intimacy of Casa Rosada.
Although it is not about what the President can do, he entrusts an official.
"It depends on her, if he endures this situation," he maintains.
On the other hand, there are those who believe that a sector of politics can take its toll on Pettovello for his recent judicial complaint due to irregularities found in the Directorate of Direct Assistance for Special Situations (Dadse), which is in charge of subsidies for the purchase of oncological medications and other complex diseases such as AIDS.
The tension with Pettovello is not the first that exists within Capital Humano.
Last week Pablo Rodrigué
, a former Buenos Aires leader in the government of María Eugenia Vidal, who had arrived at the Secretariat of Children and Family at the hands of its owner, who reports to Pettovello, Pablo de la Torre, resigned from his position.