Martín Guzmán responded to Eduardo Wado de Pedro
, in the midst of the dissemination of the INDEC data on poverty, which affected 41.7% of people in the second half of 2023, during the closure of Alberto Fernández's government.
Days ago, the former Minister of the Interior gave a report where he appealed to the metaphor of Argentina as a van that travels to Mar del Plata and runs out of gasoline halfway there.
"I laugh when many say that we lost because we had discussions. Because we make the discussions public. And the other day in a basic I gave an example," De Pedro began in a talk with the digital platform
Gelatina.
It was at that moment when he gave the example of a trip to Mar del Plata: "Halfway there we ran out of gas and a very strong discussion broke out to see if we should stop and recalculate. But the guy driving continues and we ran out of gas. And there are some who say 'we didn't arrive because they started arguing'. They don't say 'we didn't arrive because we didn't put gas in it.'
And he compared: "A Peronist government cannot win if the workers' salary is below poverty. We did not do what we had to do."
There was a lack of gasoline...
I was at @somosgelatina talking with #PedroRosemblat about a little bit of everything. pic.twitter.com/dvbFsrvhE2
— Wado de Pedro 🇦🇷 (@wadodecorrido) March 26, 2024
The former Minister of Economy, who resigned from the Frente de Todos government in conflict with La Cámpora and Cristina Kirchner, decided to respond after the data that reflected a sharp increase in poverty during the last administration that both of them were part of.
Guzmán points out that during the administration of Sergio Massa - his successor in Economy - "the poverty rate rose 5.2 percentage points: 1.5 million people fell into poverty and 1 million people fell into indigence (measured by the EPH )".
In an extensive message written through his X account (former Twitter), he noted that the poverty figure "means suffering for millions of compatriots."
"And yes, there was surely a lack of gasoline. But what was the gasoline? Was the gasoline more of a fiscal deficit with monetary emission?"
, she continued.
Yesterday the INDEC published the poverty data for 2023.
During the Massa administration, the poverty rate rose 5.2 percentage points. 1.5 million people fell into poverty and 1 million people into destitution (measured by the EPH).
Childhood poverty (0-14 years) rose 7.5… https://t.co/a2ncBA29CT
— Martín Guzmán (@Martin_M_Guzman) March 28, 2024
There, Guzmán spoke out against several of the policies that preceded him in office and in particular
pointed to the "small money plan"
that the then ruling party applied to seek to win the presidential elections.
"Or was gasoline after July 2022 the soy dollar, the brutal increase in interest rates, dual bonds (giving the highest return between inflation and devaluation to banks), the elimination of the fourth-quarter income tax category and the fiscal expansion in times of elections financed with monetary emission and the true celebration of imports in times of drought financed with an increase in commercial debt and a collapse of reserves?", the former official asked.
Guzmán, who has been active on social networks with self-criticism regarding the Fernández government and with questions about Milei's management, expressed another question at the end of his message pointing out the Unión por la Patria campaign strategy.
"Or was all that kerosene that created inequality and poverty, led to more than 200% annual inflation, and gave the current government free rein to implement even more regressive policies, which are generating even more poverty and inequality?" .
"Wado, you are an intelligent, capable guy with history. I hope you want to add," he concluded.