TO Sergio Berni he likes to brag about being the governor’s squire Axel Kicillof, that is, the one who stands in front of his boss to protect him from attacks. But on Monday, April 3, when he was beaten in the middle of the street, it became clear that the minister himself has no squire and that his style found a limit. That resource that shows him hyperactive, present, close and busy with the security problems of the people of Buenos Aires exposed a flaw that has already exhausted the residents of the suburbanwho feel that the State does not protect them against the scourge of insecurity.
The murder of Daniel Barrientos, the bus driver who was about to retire, showed the crudest side of the reality of a part of the Buenos Aires suburbs where residents live daily with crime and death. If the surveys of recent years in the province of Buenos Aires are analyzed, it will be possible to see that the main concerns of the inhabitants are inflation and insecurity. Even, for seasons, insecurity is usually ahead of economic concerns.
The beating Berni by the victim’s colleagues led to other discussions. The first was the rejection of the violence exerted by these transport company workers, but politics was also mixed. The Buenos Aires Minister of Security was rescued by the Buenos Aires City Police, who at the same time hit some protesters and even argued with Berni himself, whom they were rescuing so that they would not continue beating him.
Berni ended up being treated at the Churruca hospital, where they made some stitches in the back of his neck and told him that he had a fissure in his skull. The next day, the 61-year-old minister his whole body ached, especially the face, where he received most of the blows. Despite the fact that the police and a collaborator tried to prevent people from hitting him, there were punches that hit his cheekbones hard and had him on the verge of knocking out.
What began as a case of insecurity led to a social and union conflict and ended in a political dispute between the ruling party and the opposition. This is how sensitive the scenario is prior to the 2023 elections.
Early in the morning, when the information about the murder of the driver began to circulate, a strike and march was called for the workers of the line 620, in which Barrientos worked. Hours later, other small bus lines had joined, totaling around 50, and by the end of the day, 70 more had joined, totaling 120. In the afternoon, representatives of the Unión Tranviarios Automotor (UTA) met at the headquarters of the Buenos Aires government with Axel Kicillof and they reached an agreement that the following day led to the suspension of the strike on most of the lines. Only the 620 continued with the measure.
Berni gave some statements to the media and took the opportunity to dispatch himself against the City Security Minister, Eugenio Burzaco. In his statements, he also slipped that he could have infiltrated the march demanding justice for the death of Barrientos, he said that when he arrived they had ambushed him and he even considered the theory that a dead man could have been planted for him.
Policy
Berni became, over the years, an organic wayward of Peronism. He is part of the state structure, he belongs to the political system, but he is at odds with almost everyone. He was one of the first to harshly criticize the president Alberto Fernandez and after the electoral defeat of 2021 He distanced himself from Cristina Kirchner and he almost ended up punching his son Máximo in the La Plata campaign bunker. He is fighting with the majority of the mayors of the Conurbano, because the security problems of the municipalities are attributed to the communal chiefs and they transfer the reproaches to Berni.
When the mayors turn to the President for these claims, they are referred to the Minister of National Security and there too friction occurs. During the administration of Sabina Frederic, the then minister had decided to send members of the federal forces to carry out operations in the municipalities, something that earned her a political war with Berni. Today with Hannibal Fernandez there is also a strained relationship.
There was a good relationship with Burzaco until the episode last Monday. In 2015 they made the transition when Berni left the Secretary of National Security and Burzaco entered. Even both have a predilection for Bariloche. They both have a house in that mountain city, although Berni invested in some more land. These days he published for the sale of one of those lands for 385 thousand dollars. The maelstrom of management does not prevent him from continuing to do good business.
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