MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

“If we don’t unite, Cristina beats us with 40% of the vote”, warns Duhalde

Eduardo Duhalde and Mauricio Macri

Argentina’s presidential hopeful and former caretaker president Eduardo Duhalde warned that if the opposition doesn’t unite, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will defeat them next October 23 and be re-elected for a second four year mandate.

“We must unite, otherwise Cristina will collect 40% of votes cast and will win”, insisted Duhalde during a visit to the city of Gualeguaychú in the province of Entre Rios that next Sunday is holding primaries.

Duhalde was referring to the ‘anti-K’ front agreement proposed by the Conservative Buenos Aires City mayor Mauricio Macri who currently is runner up to Mrs Kirchner in vote intention public opinion polls for next October.

The former caretaker president who in 2003 opened the way for the Kirchner couple, met in Gualeguaychú with farmers’ organizations. Entre Rios was one of the most militant provinces when the clashes between the government of President Cristina Kirchner and farmers protesting export taxes on grains and oilseeds.

“The Kirchnerites gather every day and meet with grass root leaders that don’t belong to their sector” warned Duhalde who said that “we must to the same if we want to change this country and win in October”.

Duhalde admitted he was open and willing to adhere to an opposition front of all parties, but not of different sectors or groups. However he admitted that the so called Federal Peronist movement to which he belongs, has its own difficulties and mentioned the case of economist Roberto Lavagna the successful and much respected Economy minister who helped refinance Argentina’s defaulted debt.

“He has a political vision which does not agree with that from Macri. As long as Macri is in the horizon, he’s not coming close. I personally am not saying yes to an alliance with Macri but I won’t say no, I don’t have any personal prejudices against him” indicated Duhalde.

In an interview Macri called on the Argentine opposition parties to reach a “great accord” with “minimum guarantees of governance and as a maximum possibility, a unified presidential candidacy” to compete with President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner who has yet to make the official announcement but is clearly already on the campaign trail.

“I’m willing to sit at the negotiations table without any impositions or pre-conditions. I can lead but I will be one more at the table”, said Macri who emphasized that a first agreement must be the “defence of democracy from the steady advance of authoritarianism”.

“We need to agree on common sense, democratic commitment, understand that with the absence of these values, the systematic violation of the rule of the law, the blocking of freedom of the press and freedom of expression, violence, there are no soy crops or Brazil that can save us”, said Macri.