The head of the Buenos Aires Government, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, inaugurates this Tuesday the session period in the local Legislature with a speech that will focus on management issues, will address the dispute with the Nation for co-participation funds and will anticipate measures in educational matters. With a symbolic act, the president of the City of Buenos Aires together with the legislators of the ruling party took advantage of the call to send a message to the national government, with posters with the slogan ” We are with Ukraine “.

“I want to express my solidarity with the Ukrainian people and with the enormous Ukrainian community in Argentina and in the City. As I have already said publicly, I strongly repudiate the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine. It constitutes a violation of the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity, fundamental stones of international law and peaceful coexistence among nations”, he maintained at the beginning of his speech.

In addition, he urged President Alberto Fernández to speak out publicly against the military actions implemented by Vladimir Putin:“ I hope that in a few hours when the legislative year opens, the President strongly condemns the invasion of Ukraine and positions Argentina on the right side of history”.

The mayor of Buenos Aires speaks before the 32 legislators of the Together for Change interblock – made up of the PRO, the Civic Coalition, the UCR, Public Trust, the Socialist Party and the United Republicans – the 19 deputies of the Front of All, the main opposition bank in the City; and the minority blocs of La Libertad Avanza, Consenso Federal and the Workers’ Left Front (FIT-U).

Accompanied by the 1st Vice President of the Legislature, Emmanuel Ferrario, legislators from all blocks and the Buenos Aires Government Cabinet; The president differed from the Executive Power by stating that “there are moments in history when the difference between good and evil, between what is just and what is unjust, is very clear.”

“Today we see signs that the National Government has finally decided to join the vast majority of countries in the world that reject the invasion. This decision is the result of the firmness and courage with which different political forces and civil society organizations demand that Argentina take a position according to the circumstances”, said Rodríguez Larreta.

The management controversies that confront the Government

For this opening of sessions, the message from the head of government was written by a new team from the General Directorate for Speech Planning, led by Nicolás Gimbatti, who replaced Daniela Brocco, a historic official dedicated to the preparation of official texts in the Buenos Aires administration for about 20 years. In her intervention, Rodríguez Larreta reviewed the government plan expected for 2022 and presented it in six axes: education and work; integration; urban transformation; comprehensive wellness; digital city; and security and justice.

With this panorama, Rodríguez Larreta vindicated the health policy in 2021 during the coronavirus pandemic, where he highlighted the vaccination plan that reached 60% of the population inoculated with the booster dose; and he defended the measures adopted in the transit and transportation area with the creation of new bike lanes and the extension of the lanes for the so-called Metrobus groups.

Going forward, he anticipated a battery of projects for the next 18 months, which he plans to conclude just before the start of the 2023 electoral process in which the head of government will seek to compete for the Presidency of the Nation.

In the area of education, Rodríguez Larreta announced that the Buenos Aires government is going to present a bill aimed at “update and prioritize the training and content with which teachers prepare our children” because, as he pointed out, “in order to train the students of the future, we need the teachers of the future”. According to official sources, it would be a reform of the Teachers’ Statute regarding the mechanisms for entry and promotion in the career of education workers, which will surely probably bring about a conflict with the unions in the sector.

In addition, Rodríguez Larreta recalled that more than a million children left their education throughout the country and claimed that “attendance is the rule and not the exception” in the district. “This was demonstrated more than ever in April 2021 when, contrary to data and evidence, the national government wanted to close schools,” he insisted. And he listed some of the policies carried out for teaching, such as the “Say Present” or “Elbow to Elbow” programs, the advancement of classes to February, the extension of the compulsory extended day until the last grades of primary and first year of high school, and announcements of infrastructure for the creation of 54 new schools, among other measures.

On the other hand, Rodríguez Larreta defended some of the policies and issues that confront him with the national government and the Frente de Todos, such as urbanization projects and recovery of public spaces, or the transfer of resources and co-participation.

In a section of the speech, the head of the Buenos Aires Government ratified his support for the projects in the Costanera Norte and Costanera Sur of the City by pointing out the intention of his management for 2022 will be “to continue transforming the public space, which is the most democracy that exists. “ The first objective is for the City to recover access to the river ”, he highlighted. He presented the Costa Urbana initiative in the southern area of the riverbank, in the former Casa Amarilla de Boca, as a “new 50-block public park facing the river.” And he announced that “something similar is going to happen with Costa Salguero ”, where they are going to “add 14 green blocks and new gastronomic, cultural and commercial proposals so that the park has movement throughout the day”.

Along these lines, the Buenos Aires government reported that it will continue to improve the Colegiales railway Playón; it will advance with the “New Green Streets Plan”, which will generate squares in 10 streets of different neighbourhoods; Spaces of the Bajo Viaducto Miter and the Bajo Autopista de la 25 de Mayo will be added, with lighting, cultural venues and shops, which will imply, as the PRO leader anticipated, more than 100 new hectares of public and green space.

In addition, the head of government once again positioned himself on the transfer of the bus lines that make an exclusive route in the City to the area of the Buenos Aires administration. “Any transfer of powers or functions must be agreed upon through an agreement that incorporates a metropolitan perspective and that respects the foundations of concerted federalism,” he stated before the Legislature.

”We are and will always be willing to talk about this and about all the central issues for the well-being and development of all Argentines. But in no way are we going to allow harm to those who live and visit the City every day, ”he insisted on the transfer of the groups. “We Argentines need a true federalism where each of the provinces and the City of Buenos Aires is respected,” he remarked.

In the area of security and justice, Rodríguez Larreta once again questioned the “untimely, unconsulted, arbitrary and unconstitutional removal of co-participation funds by the national government, funds that we allocated to the Police after taking over this competition in 2016″. “Not only do I reaffirm our claim before the Supreme Court for this unconstitutional removal that occurred in the midst of the pandemic, affecting the autonomy of the City, but I also reaffirm our commitment to the safety of the people,” he concluded.

The measures planned for each area

Regarding the labor issue, the head of the Buenos Aires Government highlighted as necessary a “strategic alliance between the State and the private sector”. In this direction, the City anticipated that the training practices in the Youth Employment Plan “will bring 6,000 people in vulnerable situations closer to work environments” and that “it will seek to incorporate 10,000 young people into the labor market throughout 2022; and thanks to the Neighborhood Employment Fairs”.

Regarding tourism, the objective of the Buenos Aires government is “to recover the 3 million annual international tourists; and also to the thousands of digital nomads and national and international students who visited us”. Among the initiatives is the launch of some 500 “Study BA” postgraduate scholarships to promote federal and international exchange. Along the same lines, he recalled the sanction of the Law of Urban Transformation and Promotion of Housing in the Central Area, which seeks to reconvert downtown Buenos Aires with support for the creation of 290 cultural spaces so that they can open venues in the area, through loans from Banco Ciudad and the transformation of offices into homes.

Regarding integration, Rodríguez Larreta ratified his urbanization plan of popular neighbourhoods, reporting that nearly 5,400 families moved into new apartments and improvements were made to 2,144 existing homes. In this context, he anticipated that the opening of new streets will be implemented in the 20, Rodrigo Bueno and Playón de Chacarita neighbourhoods, giving official names to the existing ones, and confirmed that 18,000 m2 of public space will be inaugurated on the land under the Illia highway.

“We are going to continue betting on the main development tool that exists in neighbourhoods: work. Because in the neighbourhoods the culture of work has not been lost, what has been lost are the opportunities”, he pointed out when defending the first Social and Popular Economy Law, which allowed us to register more than 1,650 Productive Units that employ more of 5,500 people.

The head of the Buenos Aires Government reported on the measures promoted in culture, sports, care for the environment, respect for diversity and the fight for gender equality. In relation to these areas, he highlighted the “ Mecenazgo ” program, in which financing was granted for an amount of $1,063 million pesos; the extension of the “ Cultural Pass ” or the promotion of cultural festivals or Cosquín BA. Initiatives such as “ Active Plazas ” were also mentioned, which involves offering free gym, yoga and rhythm classes in parks and investing in sports equipment on the beaches.

In terms of diversity and gender, Rodríguez Larreta reported that the City launched the Single System for Victims of Family and Gender Violence that puts at the service of Justice all the information collected from victims and aggressors and that the Comprehensive Plan will be strengthened of Access to Work for Trans People that has existed since 2017. It also proposed actions for gender equality in the workplace, such as training programs such as Codo a Codo and Aprendé Programando, in which the female unemployment rate fell from 13.4 % to 9.5 percent.

Regarding climate change, the speech highlighted that the City of Buenos Aires is positioned as “a leader in climate change at a global level and will host the C40 Mayors Summit in October this year”, in which Rodríguez Larreta is the vice president Regarding measures, the local president recalled the “BA Recicla” program, from which “almost 300,000 eco-tachos have already been delivered to families and green containers have been placed no more than 150 meters from the houses”. In addition, he highlighted the sending of aid for the fires in Corrientes, with the support of 50 people including Firefighters and personnel from the Special Rescue, Civil Defense and Logistics Group.

The continuity of the Hydraulic Plan was also announced, with works that will add “another 40 kilometers by 2023” with the aim of mitigating floods; and reinforcement of the “ BA Presente ” program for homeless people, which will seek to cover 100% of the City in 60 minutes with the incorporation of a new monitoring room, 12 new mobiles and 30 new professionals.

At the end of the intervention, the head of the Buenos Aires Government spoke about the lessons of the pandemic and that “everything achieved is thanks to a long-term” plan that resolves step by step the structural problems that have afflicted us for decades”. “There is no more time or place for improvisation. We Argentines need a clear course that gives us certainty and allows us to project into the future and fulfil our dreams”, he explained.

In this framework, Rodríguez Larreta considered that the greatest challenge now is to build a society of dialogue that leaves aside the path “of intransigence, that of fights, that of cracks”. “The crack paralyzes us, it leaves us motionless, like statues with their eyes fixed on the problems of the past without the possibility of recognizing that, if we leave differences aside, the problems of the present have a solution,” he said.

“You will always find in me someone open to having difficult conversations, those that require courage and firmness, those that are necessary for us all to live better. And I will always be next to the people. From my place, I work for you, and listening to you helps me improve,” she stated.

After the speech, Ferrario stressed that the “strong condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was a central message” and anticipated that the ruling party will seek from the Buenos Aires Legislature to “achieve consensus through dialogue.” “Our block of 32 legislators is a diverse coalition and at Together for Change we consider diversity to be an advantage. For many years, Kirchnerism wanted us to believe that to be different was to be enemies. And the message from the Head of Government was precisely that consensus is achieved through dialogue”, he stated.