Chilean lawmakers demand storm-hit regions be included in reconstruction plan

Lawmakers from Chile's Coquimbo region are urging the government to include storm-affected areas in a national reconstruction project. Currently, the initiative, dubbed a "mega-reform," primarily focuses on repairing damage from forest fires in the Biobío region.

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The lawmakers of the region told the Minister of Finance: There can be no National Reconstruction Law without guaranteeing resources for the reconstruction of the Coquimbo Region and the Province of Huasco.

This new demand from congress members and mayors in Coquimbo, which suffered significant infrastructure damage, roads, and housing destruction from recent rains, threatens the government's slim 26-vote majority in the Senate. "There can be no National Reconstruction Law without guaranteeing resources for the reconstruction of the Coquimbo Region and the Province of Huasco," stated Senator Matías Walker.

Lawmakers are pushing for an "additive veto" to be included in the reform, similar to a "suppressive veto" the government plans to use regarding bank interest on overdue debts. "We ask that it make the same veto that they are doing for the interests of the banks, for the interests of the people who are suffering today," said Deputy Daniel Manouchehri, highlighting the region's urgent need for reconstruction funds.

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Our region (Coquimbo) is destroyed in its public infrastructure, in the housing, the roads, and we urgently require resources for reconstruction. The region with its resources is not enough, there are no resources.

The government's proposed "mega-reform" is already facing challenges, including three challenges filed by the opposition with the Constitutional Court over economic norms. The discussion of the reform in the Senate is scheduled to resume on August 4.

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We ask that it make the same veto that they are doing for the interests of the banks, for the interests of the people who are suffering today.