The economist and former minister Jorge remes lenicov / web
The former Minister of Economy, Jorge Remes Lenicov, warned that a “comprehensive program” with the support of Congress is needed to overcome the crisis, because “just devaluing” the currency is not enough to improve the economic scenario.
“When one has to attack the problem of inflation, it has to be attacking all the factors. One cannot say that ‘public spending must be lowered’ or ‘it is only necessary to devalue’, the program has to be comprehensive and it has to be all at once”, he added.
The economist, who led the exit from convertibility in 2002, said that there is a “crisis scenario, although without an outbreak”, but he maintained that the current government “already gave what it had to give and does not have the capacity to make any changes ”.
“We are in crisis. There is no burst. In 2001 we came from three years of crisis because the recession began in the middle of 1998 and broke out with some measures such as the corralito. Now measures are being taken to get there, but there is no comprehensive program,” said the economist in statements to a cable channel, as part of the presentation of his book “115 days to disarm the bomb.”
Remes Lenicov recalled that during the management of Eduardo Duhalde as head of the Presidency “he left quickly because there was a political agreement with Alfonsín and later because there was a comprehensive program.”
“We had begun to put together the program for the 1999 campaign,” he indicated and added: “When we came to the Government we had the laws well armed and in 60 days we were able to apply all those measures. That should be taken into account for the next government.
Even so, he warned that the current scenario makes it difficult “an agreement between the two largest groups, but that does not mean that a consensus cannot be built to have a majority in Congress, because the one who defines the laws is Congress. It is essential to make a political agreement”.
In turn, he maintained that a comprehensive program requires political leadership and “not jumping stages”: “One cannot grow at 8% without money or reduce poverty with plans. There has to be an instrument for each problem. I didn’t do any dirty work, I did what I had to do.”
Regarding the exchange delay of official dollars over financial ones, the former minister emphasized that “it cannot be devalued if there is no comprehensive program.” “If one devalues as was done not so long ago or does it gradually and does not accompany it with a consistent fiscal, monetary and income policy, the devaluation is useless. Because it generates more inflation and eats up the real increase, ”he warned.
Regarding the proposals for the dollarization of the Argentine economy, he recalled that during his time at the Palacio de Hacienda he had “a lot of pressure from banks and exporters,” but that “when you dollarize you lose policy instruments, and a country like ours you need the whole dashboard, not a piece.”
“If you dollarize, you do not have a monetary or exchange policy and you tie your situation to the situation in the United States, if it goes well and productivity increases, your currency will be revalued. I disagree with that policy. The problem is that there are words that sound good and synthesize a whole thought that is not made explicit, and people buy that. Dollarization was done by small countries like Hong Kong or Ecuador, ”he said about the project proposed by the pre-candidate Javier Milei.
