MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Lavagna promises to fight poverty and unify Argentines

Candidate Economist Roberto Lavagna

Former Economy minister Roberto Lavagna, often credited with helping Argentina rebound from a deep crisis, launched on Saturday his campaign for the October presidential race with a promise to fight poverty and unify Argentines.

"We have a great opportunity to build over the next 10 years with growth that reaches everyone," he told an open-air rally in Tilcara in the far-northern province of Jujuy. "The government is throwing this possibility into the trash". Polls show him trailing far behind first lady Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. Lavagna, speaking half an hour after a 6.2 magnitude quake hit Jujuy province was appointed economy minister in 2002 and retained the post after President Néstor Kirchner's election in 2003. Together they restructured billions of dollars of Argentine debt, but Lavagna was removed in December 2005 over differences on salary and tax policy. Since then he has become a leading critic of the government and is running with the support of a sector of the disbanded Radical party and some "dissident" Peronists. Lavagna, 64, accused the Kirchner administration of deviating from sound economic policy and sparking high inflation, which he called ''a machine to create poor people and destroy the Argentine middle class.'' Radical party chairman Senator Gerardo Morales is running for vice-president on Lavagna's ticket. Lavagna said it would "be natural and useful" for voters to see him share a debate with the incumbent candidate, Mrs Kirchner, but also warned that he's not willing to participate in "a media show".