La Derecha Diario A municipality in Santa Cruz closed its doors and went on strike against itself.
The measure was taken by the administration itself; it ceased its functions as a form of pressure to obtain greater resources
In an unusual event that raises serious doubts about management capacity, the Municipality of Los Antiguos, led by Mayor Zulma Neira, closed its doors in protest, but against itself.
Under the argument of supporting the municipal workers' wage claim, the local Executive decreed what can be defined as a lockout: an institutional self-blockade that blurs the functions of the government and highlights a worrying leadership crisis.
Far from being a union strike, driven by workers or labor organizations, the measure was taken by the mayor's office itself, which chose to cease its functions as a form of pressure to obtain greater resources from the government of Santa Cruz.
A gesture that, beyond the symbolism, conveys an alarming image, where a municipal State shirks its primary responsibility, which is to govern, manage, face problems, and offer solutions to citizens, even in adverse contexts.
The General Secretariat of the Cabinet of the Municipality of Los Antiguos reported, through a statement, that this "Tuesday, April 8, all activities are suspended in support of the measure of force adopted by the unions and self-convened workers."
Additionally, they added that "this decision is made in recognition of the justice of the wage claim and with the commitment to convey this request to the provincial government," in an attempt to place all the blame on the provincial government.
What happened in Los Antiguos not only highlights a structural dependence on external funds that should be urgently reviewed, but also a worrying inability to manage local resources with efficiency and creativity.
Moreover, the political gesture of "institutional strike" could be interpreted as a sort of symbolic resignation from the function of governing, telling the neighbors: "I can't, I don't know how to solve this, I'm closing."
The crisis in Los Antiguos is no longer just economic; it is also a crisis of institutionality, management, and common sense. When mayors stop governing and become protesters of their own administration, what suffers is not only the municipal economy but also the citizens' trust in the political system.
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