Buenos Aires, December 20 (NA) – A week after Lieutenant General Carlos Presti's appearance at the Ministry of Defense, the ministry is preparing to begin an audit of the Social Works of the Armed Forces (IOSFA), the third largest in the state, to order the situation and try to solve the problems it presents when providing coverage. According to the Argentine News Agency from informed sources, the process to detect irregularities will begin in the coming days, which will lead to a 'restructuring' process for the entity to eradicate the detected issues. This is one of the main demands of the Armed Forces personnel, who question the scope and coverage of the social security plan, which has 600,000 members. With the deaths of at least three soldiers this week from causes under investigation, linked to potential suicides, an active-duty soldier told the Argentine News Agency that mental health problems do not have a comprehensive approach. While the idea is to begin implementing increases, official sources stated that the decision is subject to the will of the Ministry of Economy, which must authorize the funds. 'The idea is to meet the requests because the priority is the mission, but also to take care of the troops and the military families,' they argued. The decision to push for an audit in the social security plan was made by Luis Petri, Presti's predecessor in the post, who announced it before leaving his functions to go to Congress, but it will be implemented by the Lieutenant General who requested his availability to take a place in the Cabinet. What's next In the plans of the recently appointed minister is the idea of touring the military units to get a first-hand look at the entity's functioning, the equipment, and the benefits for the personnel. Likewise, IOSFA has a debt valued at more than $200,000 million, so the official will insist on the idea of dividing the social security plan among the security forces of the Armed Forces to transfer the responsibilities and competencies to the ministry led by Alejandra Monteoliva. 'The Army does not consider mental health and IOSFA does not help at all,' he stated off the record. Javier Milei referred to the case of the soldier who died in Olivos for the first time. From Presti's circle, they assure that he knows the sector's requests firsthand and will work to resolve them. 'The largest percentage of the debt corresponds to Security,' they admitted in this regard from Balcarce 50. If the division moves forward, the benefits for the Argentine Army, Argentine Navy, and Argentine Air Force will remain under the orbit of Defense, while the services for the Argentine Naval Prefecture and National Gendarmerie would be transferred to Security. Another point that the sector demands is the delay in salaries.
