The former Minister of Transport and Public Works, Victor Rossiresponded to the criticisms that the current minister José Luis Falero made to the past administration of the Broad Front regarding the project of the central railway.
For Rossi, Falero “He is an unfortunately small being that instead of concentrating their attention on the important things that are being carried out is dedicated to petty politics”, as he said this Monday in an interview with MVD News of TV City.
The current minister appeared before the Transport Commission of the Chamber of Deputies and blamed the opposition for the problems that the work currently has, which is facing several problems in its final stretch.
“It is a project that you left us. The Central Railroad is one of the most untidy projects I’ve seen since I’ve been in public administrationand look how I have been here for years”, said the minister last Wednesday the 17th.
The minister detailed dozens of shortcomings, according to El País and told the opposition that “they left everything bad what little they left”.
Rossi’s response to Falero
This Monday, Rossi said that “a lot of work is really being done in the Ministry of Transport and Public Works in infrastructure works. “Many that we left running and that are being developed, but some important works that have been promoted in this period itself,” said the former minister.
“The minister does not miss an opportunity, I don’t know why he needs to talk nonsense, to try to discredit the past instead of dedicating himself to building and contributing to the future”he said in an interview with MVD News.
The work of the Railroad and the difficulties it went through
The work on the Central Railway, vital for UPM to move the pulp from the second floor from Paso de los Toros to the port of Montevideo, faces strong problems in its last leg.
The ministry and the Municipality of Montevideo (IM) have clashed in recent weeks over the commune’s demands regarding works to mitigate the impacts of the UPM train.
But beyond Montevideo, interventions for this purpose should also be carried out in several cities. The cost that this supposes to the portfolio, provoked disagreements with the Consortium for the Construction of the Central Railway (CCFC).
from Companies maintain that the ministry is “behind” in a series of payments that impacts the activity of local companies, contractors, subcontractors and outsourced companies.
Falero assures instead that while the new work schedule is being negotiated – with delays of several months in the deliveries of the sections – companies “are wanting to collect everything, but the debt does not say that”. “Payments are according to the progress of work. Being minors, they are paid the percentage of the minor advance. If the work is postponed until the end of the year, they will gradually charge,” said the hierarch to The Observer.
“They understand that there is an extra cost that must be covered. They claim that they did not have all the permits in a timely manner as a result of the previous administration had not resolved them. It is a fault that I’ve been correcting it every day since the beginning”, attacked the minister, who in his appearance before Deputies branded the way in which the last government of the Broad Front bequeathed the work is “shameful”.
