Chilean President Gabriel Boric hit back at his predecessor, Sebastián Piñera, after the former president accused the Chilean government of having campaigned for the constitutional plebiscite and failed to govern.
On Wednesday (14), in two interviews with Chilean television channels, Piñera, who left office in March, said that the government “in the last six months has been too dedicated to the constitutional convention, to the referendum campaign” and “to neglected the concerns of the people.”
On the 4th, the Chilean population rejected a new proposal for a Constitution for the country, with an extremely progressive content. The Boric administration tries to articulate a new constituent process so that another text is prepared and also voted on in a referendum.
Piñera defended that the government “should move away” from the negotiating table and “focus on governing”. The centre-right former president called the text rejected at the polls this month as “a very bad proposal for Chile, for the country’s future” and said parties across his political spectrum are willing to collaborate in the new constituent process.
“I was president and I remember that we faced very relentless, very destructive opposition. I believe we are not going to do to President Boric what a certain far left did to us,” he snarled.
This Thursday (15), Boric said that it is “legitimate” that Piñera has a critical view of his government, “as I had of his government, and he has the right to express that”. But then he made criticisms of his predecessor.
“I regret that a former president hides himself during all the months of campaigning and expresses his point of view on the referendum issues only after it is over,” said Boric, who claimed that his government “is fully occupied and concerned about the safety of our countrymen and to face the rising cost of living”.
#Predecessor #Boric #dedicated #constitutional #referendum #forgot #govern