The agreement of the Executive Branch with the company Katoen Natie by which the concession of the Cuenca del Plata Terminal was extended to the shipping company of Belgian origin for 50 years continues to generate controversy.
Beyond the complaints to the Prosecutor’s Office that the Broad Front has made, Senator Bergara referred on his Twitter account to a new “blockade” by the Ministry of Economy of the investigation into the “illegal and allegedly criminal monopoly of the Port of Montevideo”.
He said that “Economy again blocks the investigation of the Competition Commission for the port contract with Katoen Natie”, and remarked that it is an “unfortunate decision that adds to the tone of opacity of the entire process of illegal delivery of a monopoly in the port terminal”.
The argument that the Commission does not define the port policy is not acceptable, said Bergara, and he added that on the issues of its powers, the Commission can investigate and analyze the situation in all markets, with the exception of exclusivities granted by Law, but this is not the case of the port.
Even without complaints, the Commission can “act ex officio when it observes decisions that restrict or destroy competition in a market, as well as make recommendations to the authorities to avoid these situations. This is undoubtedly the case of the port of Montevideo”.
Unconstitutional, illegal, harmful
Bergara said that “the government handed over a monopoly in an unconstitutional, illegal and harmful way for the country, and violating all the procedures of good public management”, which is why the FA legislators made the complaints before the Justice. The parliamentarian added that “perhaps that is why they try to prevent more impartial organizations from acting.”
He stressed that the decision of the Economy “does nothing more than increase the doubts that this process has aroused throughout society.”
“That is the resolution that is being challenged, so the conflict of interest seems clear. The Minister of Economy, Azucena Arbeleche, blocks an investigation into a resolution that she herself signed in February 2021. It is not the first time that the Economy has tried to interfere in this issue, ”she indicated.
Bergara also stated that “the insistence on the political interference of a decentralized body suggests that the time has come to remove the Competition Commission from the orbit of the Ministry of Economy, and transform it into a decentralized service”, because the actions of it must be protected from political involvement.
