The Social Green Regionalist Federation (FRVS) would be experiencing an exodus of militants. Senator Alejandra Sepúlveda announced this Friday that she will resign from the community along with other members, pointing to the management of President Flavia Torrealba and the incidence of her husband, Deputy Jaime Mulet. As revealed by El Mostrador, Mulet was present at an enlarged political committee in La Moneda, replacing Torrealba, as a “stone guest”. The latter was “the icing on the cake” in the opinion of the legislator.
For Senator Sepúlveda, it is a painful resignation, because she was part of the construction of the foundations of the party that was founded in the O’Higgins Region and that began as a movement for agricultural representation. “We are founders, creators of this of this federation. And, unfortunately, over time, the administrative and economic autonomies were restricted,” declared the parliamentarian, in conversation with this medium.
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“But also, I regret, both the dialogue that had to exist between the national board and the regional boards deteriorated, as well as the permanent dialogues, which obviously have to be in a bench, in addition to the relationship between the bench and the board of the game”. “The lack of dialogue, the lack of participation, the lack of internal democracy, are things that have been occurring and growing during all this time,” says Alejandra Sepúlveda, along with affirming that there is no going back on her resignation and on that of the deputy Félix Bugueño —who has not confirmed his departure.
The slogan of the FRVS has always been “Santiago is not Chile.” However, Sepúlveda assures that this was also broken, that bond and the ability to work as a team, especially the participation of his region, O’Higgins, which he considers the strongest in electoral terms.
“We have the largest number of votes in the O’Higgins Region, as well as two parliamentarians. So, faced with this, one sees that the representatives that we had were not invited to meetings. They even questioned the agent that we proposed was the more appropriate to incorporate into the national directives. So, in the end, in some way, participation, internal democracy, were undermining the relationship we had with the national directive”, he criticizes.
Jaime Mulet, “the icing on the cake”
“The decision has already been made,” emphasizes Senator Sepúlveda, expressing that resigning is very painful. But, there is no going back, especially after learning that the husband of President Flavia Torrealba had attended the political committee of La Moneda, precisely in minutes of important negotiations. “The icing on the cake,” she says.
The senator explains, “Mulet does not have any representation in the party”, remarking that these are delicate times for the government of President Gabriel Boric. “That he is the voice of the party is not appropriate,” she says.
In this sense, for Alejandra Sepúlveda, “the party has been, for some time now, like a family SME, not like a political party”, since “this is arranged inside a house and not inside a assembly and a political discussion”.
“This is an offense to us,” acknowledges the senator who is the third national majority and has been both a deputy (2002-2018; 2018-2022) and president of the Lower House (2010 and 2011).
The situation is complex and would not be new. “We have never had meetings as a bench with the party leadership,” acknowledges Senator Sepúlveda. “We have never had meetings in which issues that are relevant from the parliamentary point of view could be discussed. So, we have no communication with La Moneda,” she said.
According to the pro-government parliamentarian, “we have cut all the bridges with La Moneda, because they (Torrealba and Mulet) are the valid interlocutors, the party leadership.” So, she added, this has also undermined the ability to express an opinion within the Government.
Now, maintains Senator Sepúlveda, “there is no possibility of discussing and analyzing the things that, from a parliamentary or senatorial point of view, might interest us in talking with the government.”
All this justifies the resignation of the legislator and several militants, councilors and regional advisers, since “there is a problem with the lack of dialogue and democracy within or participation within the board.”
Senator Sepúlveda mentioned that Senator Esteban Velásquez would also be part of the recent resignations, however he himself ruled out taking this action. Senator Velásquez even supports the leadership of the party, which has some support from the regional directives and would have been strengthened with the entry of environmental, youth and ex-ecologist leaders.
They will meet this weekend
Senator Alejandra Sepúlveda confirmed that the militants who will resign are going to hold a meeting in the O’Higgins Region this weekend, to make a collective decision on what they are going to do. “This is not a decision of the senator and the representative, it is a collective decision that we are going to make with our party bases, with the councilors, with the cores, to see which path we are going to take.”
“The most important decisions, of how we continue, we are going to make democratically,” concludes the senator.
