MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine Labor Minister said inflation is not a priority but Qatar World Cup

“One month is not going to make a big difference [...], the people deserve to see Messi champion”, pointed out Kelly Olmos, head of the Ministry of Labor.

Only six days before the beginning of the World Cup, which has Argentina as the great favorite, the Minister of Labor, Employment and Social Security of that country, Kelly Olmos, did not hide her enthusiasm for the World Cup in Qatar and said: “Then we continue working on inflation, but first let Argentina win”.

“I believe that we have to work all the time on inflation, but one month is not going to make a big difference, on the other hand, from an emotional point of view, from the point of view of what it means for all Argentines, we want Argentina to be the champion”, said the Minister to Opinión pública of Channel 9.

One of the panelists reacted with surprise to the Secretary of State's statements. “I was sure that, even if it was a matter of political correctness, everyone was going to tell me 'what do I care about the World Cup, let inflation go down and then we'll see',” she said.

Olmos, meanwhile, went back to the times of Argentina's civil-military dictatorship and recalled the 1978 World Cup that was held in her country, in the midst of the de facto government. “We were in the middle of the military process, we were being persecuted, we did not know what was going to happen to each of us [...]. Argentina was champion, we all went out to celebrate. Then we went on with reality, reality is inevitable, but in the middle we can celebrate, celebrate...”

“If Argentines as a whole can have a joy... I think the Argentine people deserve a joy, to see not only their team as a champion, but [Lionel] Messi as the champion,” she concluded.