Argentina lawmakers fail to overturn Milei veto of university funding
Updates with comments from lawmakers in paragraphs 5, 10
BUENOS AIRES, Oct 9 (Reuters) -Argentina's lower house of Congress failed onWednesday to muster the votes needed to reverse President Javier Milei's veto of a law that would have boosted university funding, a win for the libertarian leader after mass protests opposing his move.
Milei vetoed a bill last month that would haveupdated publicuniversity funding in line with Argentina's triple-digit inflation rate, one of the world's highest. Thousands of people have since demonstrated against his cuts to education and healthcare.
Lawmakers voted 160 in favor of the university funding law with 84 against and 5 abstentions, falling six votes short of the two-thirds majority of those present needed to reverse the president's veto.
Milei's far-right party makes up only a small minority in Congress, but it has formed alliances with conservative lawmakers to prevent the opposition from gathering the two-thirds needed to ratify the law.
"What we saw today was a power struggle," conservative PRO party lawmaker Alejandro Finocchiaro told reporters. "If the presidential veto did not pass, it would have been a very bad sign for markets."
Milei argues that the law would jeopardize a fiscal balance he has promoted to tackle a long-running economic crisis, and has pledged to veto anything thatthreatens it. Argentina's health, pension and education spending have been the hardest hit by Milei's public cuts.
The law vetoed by Milei would have adjusted public education budgets due to inflation. University salaries have lost around 40% of their purchasing power due to inflation.
Under Milei's austerity drive, high inflation has started to slow but Argentina is deep in recession and poverty rates have surged over 50%.
But opposition to the president's spending cuts, especially to education funding, still retains impassioned supporters.
"The right to public education defines our nation," opposition center-left UCR party lawmaker Facundo Manes said during the veto debate. "Education is the best economic policy of the 21st century, which is why we will not give up defending it."
Reporting by Nicolas Misculin and Walter Bianchi; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by Chris Reese, Leslie Adler and Mark Porter
Pinakabagong Balita
Disclaimer: Ang mga kabilang sa XM Group ay nagbibigay lang ng serbisyo sa pagpapatupad at pag-access sa aming Online Trading Facility, kung saan pinapahintulutan nito ang pagtingin at/o paggamit sa nilalaman na makikita sa website o sa pamamagitan nito, at walang layuning palitan o palawigin ito, at hindi din ito papalitan o papalawigin. Ang naturang pag-access at paggamit ay palaging alinsunod sa: (i) Mga Tuntunin at Kundisyon; (ii) Mga Babala sa Risk; at (iii) Kabuuang Disclaimer. Kaya naman ang naturang nilalaman ay ituturing na pangkalahatang impormasyon lamang. Mangyaring isaalang-alang na ang mga nilalaman ng aming Online Trading Facility ay hindi paglikom, o alok, para magsagawa ng anumang transaksyon sa mga pinansyal na market. Ang pag-trade sa alinmang pinansyal na market ay nagtataglay ng mataas na lebel ng risk sa iyong kapital.
Lahat ng materyales na nakalathala sa aming Online Trading Facility ay nakalaan para sa layuning edukasyonal/pang-impormasyon lamang at hindi naglalaman – at hindi dapat ituring bilang naglalaman – ng payo at rekomendasyon na pangpinansyal, tungkol sa buwis sa pag-i-invest, o pang-trade, o tala ng aming presyo sa pag-trade, o alok para sa, o paglikom ng, transaksyon sa alinmang pinansyal na instrument o hindi ginustong pinansyal na promosyon.
Sa anumang nilalaman na galing sa ikatlong partido, pati na ang mga nilalaman na inihanda ng XM, ang mga naturang opinyon, balita, pananaliksik, pag-analisa, presyo, ibang impormasyon o link sa ibang mga site na makikita sa website na ito ay ibibigay tulad ng nandoon, bilang pangkalahatang komentaryo sa market at hindi ito nagtataglay ng payo sa pag-i-invest. Kung ang alinmang nilalaman nito ay itinuring bilang pananaliksik sa pag-i-invest, kailangan mong isaalang-alang at tanggapin na hindi ito inilaan at inihanda alinsunod sa mga legal na pangangailangan na idinisenyo para maisulong ang pagsasarili ng pananaliksik sa pag-i-invest, at dahil dito ituturing ito na komunikasyon sa marketing sa ilalim ng mga kaugnay na batas at regulasyon. Mangyaring siguruhin na nabasa at naintindihan mo ang aming Notipikasyon sa Hindi Independyenteng Pananaliksik sa Pag-i-invest at Babala sa Risk na may kinalaman sa impormasyong nakalagay sa itaas, na maa-access dito.
