The governor of Buenos Aires Province, Axel Kicillof, warned on Monday that “the province is facing an exceptional situation, an enormous challenge and needs clear tools to navigate this time without leaving our people unprotected,” during a press conference to request support for the debt request.
At a press conference alongside Vice Governor Verónica Magario, the provincial leader announced an extra disbursement for the 135 municipalities in a bid to secure the support of various sectors ahead of the Wednesday session in the Legislature.
In his speech, the provincial leader denounced a “financial siege” on the province and warned that “all provinces are facing this problem.”
“They have removed and cut back mandatory resources that are legally enshrined. They are not transferring funds related to security and transport compensation,” he added.
Kicillof stated that the debt “is for the province to continue functioning and meet its obligations without cutting essential services and without worsening the hardships of the people of Buenos Aires, who are being hit by the national government.”
“We are not asking for extraordinary funds or taking on debt for pharaonic projects, no different from what other provinces are asking to sustain their financing. This should be a mere formality,” he added.
The provincial leader pointed out that the financing request sent to the Legislature “is not for new debt but to obtain the necessary resources to meet maturities, part from last year, where we did not have the laws, and part from this year, where we have the maturities.”
“The debt will not go up or down, it will remain at current levels,” he clarified.
Although the debt includes a fund to be distributed among municipalities for “the equivalent of 8% of the total resources that come from the law,” and which is estimated at 350 billion pesos, he announced that “since municipalities need certainty, we have decided to guarantee approximately 250 billion pesos in 5 fixed and legally determined payments so that each mayor can count on those resources.”
“This regardless of the level and volume that the debt placement may reach,” he clarified.
The provincial leader asked the Legislature to “support and vote for this law in favor of the interests of 17 million people from Buenos Aires.”
As reported by the Argentine News Agency, Kicillof is seeking to demonstrate strength with the backing of mayors from different sectors.
