The intern in La Libertad Avanza added a new chapter of tension, this time focused on the administration of Congress’ resources. In the last few hours, various social media accounts identified with the ruling party began a campaign of criticism against Victoria Villarruel. The axis of the question is the expense of 15 million pesos allocated to the provision of coffee for the Senate, a figure that digital militancy described as contradictory with the austerity discourse of the Executive Branch.
However, examination of public accounts reveals a significant disparity between both chambers. While the focus of criticism fell on the vice president, the management of Martin Menem In the Chamber of Deputies, a significantly larger contract was carried out for the same area.
The tender of the Lower House
According to the official records of the Chamber of Deputies, Public Tender 17/2024 was processed for the “acquisition of cafeteria supplies with the provision of express machines.” The process concluded with the award to a single bidder, the firm Cafés Muiño SRL, for a total amount of $178,617,700.
The amount disbursed by the Chamber chaired by Menem represents almost twelve times the amount that generated the controversy in the Senate. Despite the magnitude of the difference, the libertarian communication ecosystem did not direct its criticism towards the management of Deputies, focusing its reproaches exclusively on the figure of Villarruel.
A budget intern
This double standard in the reading of parliamentary expenses exposes, once again, the fragility of the relationship between the Casa Rosada and the Presidency of the Senate. In the corridors of the Legislative Palace it is interpreted that the use of these budget data does not seek a real audit on the efficiency of spending, but rather works as a tool of political pressure amid the differences in criteria that Villarruel maintains with the “iron triangle” of the Government.
The contrast of the numbers:
- Senate Chamber (Villarruel): $15,000,000.
- Chamber of Deputies (Menem): $178,617,700.
The controversy makes it clear that, in the current power scheme, the “chainsaw” criteria seem to be applied with different rigor depending on the level of political alignment of the person managing the funds.
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