“We do not have projects in Chile, because projects cannot be done in Chile.”
The statements made by the president of the paper company, Luis Felipe Gazitúa, regarding its investments in the country did not go down well with the Government. If on Thursday the official response came from the Treasury, during this session the voice was raised by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Carlos Montes, who came out to support the words of the head of the Treasury, Mario Marcel.
Yesterday, Minister Mario Marcel reminded Gazitúa of the collusion scandal and asked him for “prudence.” Today, Minister Montes also recalled CMPC’s past and criticized the intention to “influence the rest of public opinion with a statement, that the truth is that it is not very responsible, at a time when it is trying to reactivate the economy”.
“When a company, like the paper company, that has had the history it has had in this country, when the Collusion Case also arises, says that it cannot invest in Chile, that executive does not assume its own reality,” said Minister Montes. in conversation with CNN Chile Radio.
“I find Minister Marcel right,” added the Secretary of State.
The head of the Minvu gave the Chilean Chamber of Construction as an example of public/private relations, with whom he said he had “a permanent understanding. I go to regions and meet with them in each region to see what the specific problems are, we have working groups. There can always be differences on some issues, but within a line, that the country’s objective is the Housing Emergency Plan.”
Minister Montes took the opportunity to reiterate the call to the banks to join the efforts to boost the housing sector, especially after the modifications to the State Guarantee Fund (FOGAES) were presented this Thursday, both to acquire a housing solution and For the construction.
“The State has created at least three mechanisms to facilitate credits, which give guarantees to banks and, in turn, ensure that companies can start construction. The truth is that we see a very passive banking system in this regard, as if stimulating economic activity were not a problem for the banks, because what happens with construction, which buys inputs in all economic sectors, generates a lot of employment and what we would like, then, is for them to have a more collaborative attitude, to contribute and help this move forward, because there is a housing stock that has not been sold,” stressed the Secretary of State.
Minister Montes rejects the summons of a businessman due to “archaeological waste”
Yesterday, the president of a real estate company emphasized the delay caused by the “permits” that some constructions in the country have to comply with, especially with what he called “archaeological waste,” which is often found at construction sites. For this reason, Cristian Boetsch requested the help of the head of the Minvu, assuring that “I believe that the minister can help us a lot in reducing the time required for permits because it makes all projects more expensive.”
When asked about the issue, the Secretary of State stated that “I would not say that he questioned me, on the contrary, he raised an issue. We strongly agree that the National Monuments Council must be modernized, it has to be faster, it has to have more specialists to operate at a different pace. And I add another issue, the electric company that takes eight months to make the connection between the work and the network. “Eight months means eight months that the company has been without payment.”
