The Chamber of Deputies discusses this Wednesday the privatization of Argentine Airlines in a plenary session of the Transportation and Budget committees where the ruling party is seeking to obtain a ruling to debate the bills next week in the lower house. In this context, the Secretary of Transportation, Franco Mogetta, He explained to those present and explained: “The project that is being presented today is in a different context, of the world and of Argentina.“We did a job of deregulating the regulations.”
Regarding the need to move forward with the project and the deregulation of the air sector, the secretary assured that “with the deregulation of the air sector, Argentines are having more alternatives to fly around the country and throughout the region.” Finally, Mogetta pointed out the union movements of flight attendants: “The unionists who claim to defend Aerolíneas Argentinas are the ones who harm it the most.”
In this context, Mogetta spoke before the Committee on Transportation and Budget and provided details on the bills that seek to denationalize the airline. “The project that is being presented today is in a different context, of the world and Argentina“We did some work to deregulate the regulations,” he explained.
Regarding the opening to other competitors, the secretary assured that “It cannot be a luxury to fly because it is a necessity to connect in our country“. In this regard, the official assured that air deregulation “has already begun to bear fruit” because “Argentines are having more alternatives to fly around the country and throughout the region.”
“We have already eliminated the tariff bands which prevented lower fares from being offered, we eliminated the system of public hearings for new routes, we streamlined the operation of new airlines, we regulated cooperation between companies and the operation of smaller aircraft, we facilitated the use of spaces in airports that were previously occupied by Aerolíneas Argentinas. We deregulate the entire sector so that Argentines have greater connectivity“the secretary said.
In reference to the measures taken by the ruling party, Mogetta assured that “It is not an attack on Aerolíneas Argentinas” . “We want Aerolíneas Argentinas to compete under the same rules that apply to other airlines.”
“Today it is a company that had to be assisted with 8 billion dollars by the Argentine State. “It’s a lot of money that we are not in a position to hand over,” he concluded.
Finally, the official strongly criticized the airline’s workers. “The unionists who claim to defend Aerolíneas Argentinas are the ones who harm it the most,” he said.
Privatization of Aerolíneas Argentinas: what the new initiatives propose
In detail, the ruling party is currently considering two main projects for the privatization of Aerolíneas Argentinas. The first of them was presented by the PRO bloc and is defended by deputy Hernán Lombardi.
It establishes to declare “subject to privatization, under the terms and with the effects provided for in Law No. 23,696 on State Reform, the company Aerolíneas Argentinas SA.” In addition, the text authorizes “establishing the legal framework and carrying out the procedure to implement the privatization process referred to in Article 1.”
Regarding the project, Lombardi asked to “completely replace the commercial air system that brought us here and meant a tourism clamp“. The official also stressed: “There was already an attempt at privatization that failed. because it only went from a public monopoly to a private one, that is, an abuse of a dominant position
On the other hand, there is the initiative of the Civic Coalition, defended by deputy Juan Manuel López, calls for the provisions included in the Bases Law to be respected in order to proceed with privatizationwhich includes the participation of the Bicameral Commission on Privatizations of Congress, the Office of the General Comptroller of the Nation and the Office of the General Audit of the Nation (AGN).
In this regard, the law establishes that the commission must be informed of any preference granted to a potential purchaser by the National Executive Branch within the framework of the provisions of Article 17 of Law 23,696.
Also of the measures adopted to guarantee the principles of “transparency, competition, maximum participation, equality, publicity and open government in decision-making processes.”
Referring to his bloc’s initiative, Lopez justified: “It is a lie that a state airline is needed because they don’t fly to certain destinations and there could be smaller companies that go to smaller cities.” “At the time, Aerolíneas was privatized, Iberia took it over and it was a disaster, because The demand is to open up competition and Argentina has it in terms of air commerce a hyper-regulated market,” he concluded.
Source: Ambito
