Guillermo Francos, Minister of the Interior, said that if the legislative discussion takes a full year, no more pesos will enter Argentina
Javier Milei's government asked the Argentine Congress this Sunday (7 January 2024) to speed up the approval of the package that establishes a broad reform of the State, including changes to the country's electoral and criminal laws. Argentine Interior Minister Guillermo Francos said the plan is “emergency situation”.
“We cannot wait 4 years. What the president proposes is that we are in an emergency situation like Argentina has never faced before. The Argentine State is destroyed, it does not have the capacity to face the most essential problems that a State must cover”said Francos in an interview with a radio station in the country.
The minister stated that “there is no time” is that “If we start discussing a law that takes us a whole year, there will be no more weight”.
The project, entitled “Law of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentines”, in free translation, or “Bus Law”, has 183 pages and 664 articles. Here's the complete (PDF – 2 MB, in Spanish).
In addition to the reforms, the project declares “public emergency in economic, financial, fiscal, social security, security, defense, tariff, energy, health, administrative and social issues until December 31, 2025”with the possibility of extension for another 2 years.
“You cannot stop an attempt at reform to generate more economic activity, to hire more people, so that there is more work. If we put in mind the seriousness of the situation the country is experiencing, perhaps we will begin to understand that this time it is necessary to follow the rules established by the Constitution to deal with issues of necessity and urgency”said Francos.
Read some of the central points of the “Bus Law”:
- privatizations: enables the privatization of 41 public companies. Among them are Aerolineas Argentinas, Banco de la Nación and YPF. The decree does not detail the process, but establishes as the 1st stage the transition of companies to SA (Sociedade Anônima);
- deregulation of different sectors: determines the end of regulation of book prices, the entry of products “for non-commercial purposes” and removes the limitation on the resale of tickets for sporting events;
- retirement: overturns the previous adjustment calculation. The decree does not establish a new formula for the calculation, but states that the “The Executive Branch may carry out periodic increases to prioritize beneficiaries with lower pensions”;
- manifestations: The gathering of 3 or more people in demonstrations that “prevent or hinder the operation of land, water or air transport or public communications services and the supply of water or electricity”. Determines a sentence of 1 to 3 and a half years in prison;
- electoral reform: the document revokes primary elections and establishes the adoption of a district system in elections for deputies.
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