Evelyn Matthei (UDI), the former Chile Vamos presidential candidate, criticized Jorge Quiroz's continued tenure as finance minister under President José Antonio Kast. "I would absolutely not keep him there," she said in an interview with Radio ADN.
According to CNN Chile, the former mayor of Providencia discussed the country's difficult economic situation. She first described the position: "The role of a finance minister is very difficult." She added that those holding the post must watch every word, because "people are very sensitive when people are having a very hard time."
When asked whether he should be replaced, Matthei ruled out that happening: "He isn't going to change, and they aren't going to look for another minister either."
The criticism coincides with the fifth consecutive increase in fuel prices. This Thursday, gasoline prices rose by $41.3 per liter. According to economists, the increase would add between one and two tenths of a percentage point to October's Consumer Price Index (CPI), which will be released in two weeks.
According to El Desconcierto, Matthei argued that the government had time to prepare. "On February 28, the Strait of Hormuz was closed," she said. A significant share of the world's oil passes through that waterway, located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.
The former mayor also questioned the administration's argument that public funds are lacking. "Do you really think they're going to believe you when you say there's no money?" she asked.
To support her criticism, she cited several government expenditures: an event that, she said, cost $800 million; sending more than 20 political ambassadors abroad; and the elimination of property tax payments, which she estimated at US$220 million annually.
Matthei acknowledged that those figures are smaller than the cost of the fuel price increases. However, she insisted that the problem lies in the political and fiscal message. "Signals are very important," she said.
The criticism carries political weight. Matthei was the traditional center-right's presidential candidate in the last election, and her remarks come from a sector that should be an ally of Kast's government.
The sources reviewed contain no response from Minister Quiroz or La Moneda. Meanwhile, the next concrete figure will be October's CPI, which will measure how much fuel price increases affected household budgets.
