On a Sunday full of ceremonies and protocol events in which Javier Milei took over as president of the Argentina, the new president signed a Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU) by which he repealed a rule established years ago by former president Mauricio Macri – his ally in the runoff against Sergio Massa – in which he had prohibited the appointment of direct relatives in the administration public. The new head of state resolved this measure to appoint his sister, Karina Mileiat the head of a secretariat of ministerial rank.
During yesterday afternoon he swore in his nine ministers and the chief of staff in the White Room of the Pink House, and, particularly, when appointing Karina Milei in the position of General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Nation could not help but get excited.
LOOK: Javier Milei’s first speech as president of Argentina where he announced an economic “shock”
To get to live that event, Milei had to back down with a decree published in the summer of 2018 by former president Macri which established: “No appointments may be made of persons, under any modality, in the entire National Public Sector who have any relationship of kinship, both in a direct line and in a collateral line up to the second degree with the President and vice president of the Nation, head of “Cabinet of ministers, ministers and other officials with the rank and hierarchy of minister.”
The standard, signed on January 30th of that year for Macri and the then Chief of Staff Marcos Penawas justified with the intention of continuing to “improve the institutionality, integrity and transparency of all public policies” carried out by that government and the need to “adapt new criteria that are applicable to the appointment regime under any modality of public officials.” ” after two years of management and after an “administrative reorganization.”
At that moment, The issuance of the regulations generated controversy given that the people affected by the measure had to “disengage” before the following February 28although appointments made through public competition or those who had stability in the position were excepted.
Now, this Monday, December 11, 2023, the rule was modified through decree 12/2023, published in the Official Gazette, and left in force the impossibility for an official to appoint a person “who has some kinship relationship both in a straight line and in a collateral line up to the second degree, including a spouse and cohabiting union” under the public employee regime. However, he exempted the President from this, who – as argued in the recitals – is empowered through the National Constitution to appoint and remove officials according to the principle of suitability for access to public office.
The change between one decree and the other is that the first speaks of the impossibility of assigning public positions “under any modality”, while the new one establishes that they cannot be hired specifically under “the modalities of the Laws Nos.. 20,744 (to 1976), its amendments and supplements, and 25,164 and his Regulatory Decree No. 1421 of August 8, 2002 and its amendment, and of Decree No. 1109 on December 28, 2017″. These are the contracting modalities that loom over the employment contract regime and the regulatory framework of national public employment.
Among the first measures signed by the elected president, is the new ministry law, which reduced the number of portfolios from 18 to 9. Also, he took on the task of making his Cabinet official, as published early this Monday in the Official Gazette.
