Getty ImagesA minister in the government of Buenos Aires, Argentina’s largest province, has sparked controversy by suggesting he may seek independence.
Jorge D’Onofrio, transport minister of the state’s leftist Peronist government, said in a radio interview that if it were an independent country it would have “the largest GDP in Latin America.”
He described the policies of Argentina’s central government, led by right-wing liberal President Javier Millei, as “insane” and accused him of destroying the country.
D’Onofrio’s comments mark the latest stage in a power struggle between Argentina’s central government and its largest region.
The province of Buenos Aires is at odds with Millais’ government on many issues, including transportation policy.
The province, which does not include the city of Buenos Aires itself, is home to approximately 17.5 million people, almost 40% of Argentina’s population.
Its main city is La Plata, with a metropolitan area of about 1 million people.
The state is one of five still ruled by the Peronist opposition, which lost the presidency to Milais in an election about a year ago.
The state’s governor is Aksel Kisilov, an economist with close ties to the Peronist faction led by former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.
Peronism, a political movement founded by late President Juan Peron in the 1940s, had dominated Argentine politics for many years, but Millay’s victory in October 2023 threw Argentine politics into turmoil.
In an interview with Radio Splendid, D’Onofrio said: “Today, as the leader of Buenos Aires, I may be able to propose a constitutional amendment to see if we can get out of the nation-state.”
He added: “If Buenos Aires were a state today, it would have the richest GDP in Latin America.”
Although he doesn’t think independence is the way forward, “it’s a discussion that we, the people of Buenos Aires, have to have, because we produce 45% of Argentina’s wealth, collect 22% of the revenue share, “This is because they are subsidizing the inefficiency of the state,” he added. remaining states and provinces. ”
The central government has just submitted a plan to deregulate bus services, but Kisilov warned that his state will not comply.
If Mr. D’Onofrio has his way, the conflict could become even more intense. The transport minister said Buenos Aires even has the power to issue its own currency if it wishes.
But the idea was quickly dismissed by Luciano Laspina, an Argentine congressman from the centre-right party of former president Mauricio Macri.
“The proposal by one of Prime Minister Kisilov’s ministers to make the province of Buenos Aires independent of the Argentine Republic is the most ridiculous proposal in recent years,” Laspina wrote in a post on X.
