Asunción toll proposal rejected as corruption cure sought

Soledad Núñez, an opposition candidate for mayor of Asunción, has strongly denounced a proposal to implement tolls for vehicles entering the capital. The suggestion, reportedly ordered by Horacio Cartes, the head of the National Republican Association (ANR), was directed at official candidate Camilo Pérez. Núñez asserted that the solution to Asunción's chaotic traffic and other persistent problems lies in eradicating corruption, dismantling "parallel accounts," and ending bribery.

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The structure that led Asunción to chaos, that put Nenecho in and took him out, now wants Asunción residents to pay tolls to resolve the traffic disorder.

Speaking at a meeting with women leaders from the Authentic Radical Liberal Party (PLRA) and other opposition sectors, Núñez criticized the administration responsible for Asunción's current state. She stated, "The structure that led Asunción to chaos, that put Nenecho in and took him out, now wants Asunción residents to pay tolls to resolve the traffic disorder."

Núñez further elaborated, "We must pay tolls so they can continue to steal asphalt, take bribes with the traffic police, and maintain the parallel accounts that funnel our money into their pockets." She highlighted the unfinished state of projects in the San Pablo, Santo Domingo neighborhoods, and the San Antonio basin, attributing their neglect to the mismanagement of funds from the "G8," a substantial loan that reportedly disappeared during the tenure of Óscar "Nenecho" Rodriguez. Núñez pointedly linked this to the general elections two months later, where Rodriguez's wife was elected senator, implying a connection between Rodriguez, Luis Bello (interim mayor), and Camilo Pérez (the ruling party's candidate).

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We must pay tolls so they can continue to steal asphalt, take bribes with the traffic police, and maintain the parallel accounts that funnel our money into their pockets.

Núñez pledged a different approach, stating, "That will not happen with me. The solution is to end corruption and the feast of a few in the municipality of Asunción and return honesty and transparent management to the city, not through the pockets of citizens." The event saw participation from various PLRA leaders and candidates, including Lorena Segovia, Senator Celeste Amarilla, former Senator Kattya González, and other prominent female figures.

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That will not happen with me. The solution is to end corruption and the feast of a few in the municipality of Asunción and return honesty and transparent management to the city, not through the pockets of citizens.