The fight between Karina Milei and Santiago Caputo is today the central crack within the libertarian ruling. Karina, as general secretary of the Presidency, controls the penalty pen and the territorial assembly next to the Clan Menem (Martín and “Lule”) and operators such as Sebastián Pareja. From there he colonized the delegations of the PAMI and ANSES, in many cases demanding compulsive salaries to finance campaigns.
Caputo, on the other hand, relies on “the forces of heaven”, the digital militancy that follows as a presidential strategist. To balance Karina’s territorial power, she sought to use Pami as a trench with the support of Mario Lugones, who today sponsor Esteban Leguízamo in driving.
The clash was exacerbated in the closure of 2025 lists: Karina marginalized almost all caputist paintings and agreed with the PRO, while Caputo was isolated and her people denounces “thoughness” and “black boxes” in the Pami.
The tension exploded on social networks, with trolls and influencers aligned to Caputo facing Karina directly. There seems to be no return.
Pami is not just a social work. Its budget for 2025 exceeds 4.9 billion pesos, which makes it one of the largest boxes in the state. And its 38 delegations, distributed throughout the country, function as a territorial network with political impact. It is no accident that this year several managers will apply for municipal, provincial and national positions.
This process resulted in complaints about the financing of campaigns. Leaders of Libertad advances appointed in the agency were accused of demanding contributions to employees: between 10 and 25 percent of their salaries. In Misiones, the lawyer Adrián Núñez – referenced in Karina Milei – was denounced for that practice. In Santa Cruz, a doctor said he was forced to contribute money to rent a party headquarters. In La Plata, an accountant said that he should transfer a million monthly pesos to space operators. Dispersed complaints, but that configure a pattern: the PAMI as an electoral platform and party box.
The internal ones exacerbated. From caputism, Leguízamo audits were read as an attempt to cut power to karinism in the provinces. On the other side, they accuse him of manipulating complaints to justify displacements. The result was a series of guidance and glare layings of directors.
The tenders aggravated the painting. In May 2025, the TN channel revealed that the purchase of adult diapers – for an amount of 466 billion pesos – was awarded to Urbano Express SA. The home delivery scheme was defended by the Government as a modernization that would eliminate intermediaries and fraud. But guilds like ATE denounced overprices and delays: for months, thousands of affiliates had to pay their pocket to access the input.
Last week, a television report of the program “and tomorrow what” showed that the PAMI paid intraocular lenses for cataract surgeries up to ten times more expensive than in the wholesale market. ATE and more than 500 ophthalmologists denounced overprices of up to 500 percent, poor quality supplies and illegal returns to officials. Leguízamo and Lugones rejected the accusations and defended the centralized purchase as a way of guaranteeing traceability and avoiding risky practices such as the reuse of inputs. However, the PAMI Specialized Prosecutor’s Office opened an ex officio investigation and the case went to the national political agenda. Both episodes placed the body in the center of public discussion. The PAMI was associated with complaints of millionaire overprices in essential hiring –pass and lenses – and compulsive collection accusations in the delegations.
