The announced purchase of 24 French Rafale fighter aircraft at a cost of US$3.5 billion by the government of Dina Boluarte continues to receive criticism. Congressman Carlos Anderson argued that it is “unpatriotic to waste money on a totally whimsical allocation.”
His statement was an implicit response to the Minister of Defense, Walter Astudillowho in his eagerness to justify the millionaire and unjustified acquisition maintained, days ago, that those who oppose it are “traitors to the country.”
“The minister has said that whoever opposes is unpatriotic, but unpatriotic is wasting money, making a totally whimsical allocation and who knows what’s behind thatthat is what is truly unpatriotic. We should not allow ourselves to be manipulated in that way, I am opposed to that expense, whether with today’s resources or with debt,” the legislator stressed.
Anderson added that with the US$3.5 billion that the government intends to spend on this purchase, Peru could invest in two ports of Chancay if it is taken into account that their construction requires US$1.3 billion of investment.
LOOK: Minister clings to absurd purchase of war planes
“So, what should be the reasonableness of all this? (…) We are not in lean times in Peru, there are resources, what happens is that there are plenty of thieves, so the resources are not used appropriately,” he added.
“If you told me that there is not a single school in Peru where the children lack water, where they are all sitting and have what they need, when you tell me that the medical posts are well equipped, with medicines, with the necessary doctors, with the Internet to do telehealth, there is water in Sullana 24 hours a day, when we have all those conditions, let’s give ourselves all the luxuries we want, let’s buy 20, 50 airplanes, aircraft carriers, but we’re not in that,” he stressed.
Along these lines, he stressed that although national defense cannot be neglected, it is also required that we be effective in the use of resources.
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