The libertarian leader Enzo Ferreira was involved in a political and cultural scandal after the dissemination of a series of publications on the social network X in which he insulted the singer Mercedes Sosa emblematic figure of Argentine popular music and identity reference of Tucumán. Ferreira serves as coordinator of Radio Nacional Tucumán —a station that bears the artist’s name— and is also a provincial reference for La Libertad Avanza, which amplified the institutional impact of her sayings.
The episode originated from messages published months ago but that recently went viral. In them, the official described Sosa as “fat communist” and replicated a post from another user that defined her as “a cancer”, expressions that generated an immediate transversal repudiation. Far from retracting at first, Ferreira responded to the criticism with a defiant tone: “A crazy person who I don’t know who he is came out in a media outlet designed to cover me with fun tweets,” he wrote, adding: “I only made a physical and ideological description.”
The controversy escalated quickly due to the leader’s public inauguration and his role at the head of a state radio station that pays tribute precisely to the attacked artist. From the Cultural Entity of Tucumán, an organization dependent on the provincial government, a harsh statement was issued in which it was considered “it is unacceptable that hate speech, symbolic violence and devaluation circulate in public spaces,” especially when they come from officials. The organization also stressed that the offense not only affects Sosa’s memory but also the community, as he is an “undisputed reference” figure of Tucumán’s cultural heritage.
In parallel, different political and cultural sectors demanded Ferreira’s resignation, in a context in which the provincial government – headed by Osvaldo Jaldo— distanced itself from the statements and institutionally supported the repudiation expressed by the cultural area. Although a specific sanction was not immediately reported, public pressure led to formal requests for his removal from office and opened a debate about the limits of officials’ speech on social networks.
Mercedes Sosa’s family was one of the most forceful voices. Through a statement released by their niece, they explicitly demanded the official’s departure: “We ask for the resignation of the coordinator of Radio Nacional Tucumán Mercedes Sosa. It is inadmissible for a public official to be in charge of the station that bears the name of the person he tried to discredit.” In the same text, they highlighted the symbolic dimension of the event: “Mercedes’ dimension transcends any attempt at aggression.”
In radio statements, the family described the statements as “an act of profound cowardice” and considered it “pathetic, terrible and violent” to use physical appearance or an illness as a form of attack against a deceased figure who “can no longer defend himself or debate.”
Given the magnitude of the repudiation, Ferreira later published a statement in which he asked for “sincere apologies to the family and friends,” although without fully retracting the content of his expressions. “Some of the text was offensive, it was also descriptive,” he maintained, adding that “it should not be an insult to describe a person ideologically.” He even reaffirmed his political stance by questioning communism and linking his criticisms to deep ideological differences.
The episode not only exposed political tensions in the province but also reignited discussions about the use of hate speech. While calls for sanctions continue, the case has established itself as one of the most resonant recent conflicts at the intersection between politics and cultural memory.
Image gallery
