'Corruption Museum': Sandra Pettovello revealed the Kirchnerist public frauds

In an unprecedented offensive against structural corruption, the Ministry of Human Capital, under the leadership of Sandra Pettovello, has revealed an extensive catalogue of irregularities committed during the Kirchnerist government. Ironically called the "Museum of Corruption", the compendium exposes how so-called "public policies" concealed multi-million dollar deals, in a scheme that combined abuse of authority, fraud, and extortion of the most vulnerable sectors.

Among the most prominent cases, Polo Obrero, led by Eduardo Belliboni, was reported for requiring beneficiaries of the Potenciar Trabajo Plan to attend marches and demonstrations in exchange for keeping the subsidy, even charging them a percentage of the amount granted. Expense reports were justified with fake invoices. Alongside Belliboni, Jeremías Cantero faces charges of fraudulent administration.

Línea 134 recorded, between February 2 and 7, 2024, more than 1,800 reports of aggravated coercion against beneficiaries of social plans, who were forced to attend protests under threat of losing state aid. Cases such as Sofía Ñañes, who was threatened with losing her Potenciar Trabajo if she did not attend marches organised by a social group, illustrate the perversion of these mechanisms.

In another aspect of the scandal, the disastrous former president Alberto Fernández was reported on February 28, 2024, for fraud and abuse of authority by awarding insurance contracts to low-solvency companies "by hand", benefiting personal friends and even his secretary.

Audits also uncovered the lack of control in the National Secretariat for Children, Adolescents, and Family (SENNAF), where subsidies were granted without accountability, compromising child assistance programmes.

One of the most frequently mentioned names in the investigation is Emilio Pérsico, former Secretary of Social Economy, accused of directing multi-million dollar subsidies to cooperatives aligned with his administration. Pérsico literally operated on both sides of the counter: he granted funds to the groups he himself led.

Corruption also reached the material level: in the purchase of 1.3 million school smocks, 84% of the budget (5.5 billion pesos) was spent (12,125,424 USD), but only 47% of the merchandise was delivered. Thirty-three cooperatives were raided for keeping the funds without fulfilling the delivery.

The Progresar Program showed a complete lack of control, granting scholarships with ANSES funds—money from retirees—without verifications or accountability. Meanwhile, the investigation detected the existence of phantom soup kitchens, registered to receive food and money, but nonexistent in reality: some appeared in gated communities, others in commercial premises such as a tyre shop.

The Tecnópolis site was not exempt from irregularities: the disappearance of technological equipment linked to the heritage area was confirmed.

Another focus of misappropriation was CEDYAT (Centre for Technological Development and Assistance), which signed agreements with the Ministry of Labour for exorbitant amounts between 2017 and 2020, presenting serious administrative irregularities.

Finally, on November 14 and 19, 2024, the Government terminated the privilege pensions of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and Amado Boudou. Both, convicted of crimes against public administration, were receiving lifetime allowances that the current Government considered unacceptable for people who have violated honour and public trust.

"Corruption can't govern in Argentina," officials from Human Capital emphasise. Pettovello stresses that these investigations not only seek to punish past crimes, but also to ensure that state resources reach those who truly need them, without being hostages of political operators or corrupt intermediaries. The "Museum of Corruption" is, for the current administration, an x-ray of the plundering that explains why millions of Argentines were trapped in poverty despite the billions allocated to "social inclusion."