MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

President Lacalle Pou: Overturning social security reform would entail a great step backward

Lacalle said that if the plebiscite goes ahead he would campaign in favor of keeping the mechanism as it is

Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou said that reversing the social security reform would imply “a great setback” for his country and pointed out that there seems to be a great rush to carry out this measure.

The possibility was put on the table when the Pit-Cnt grouping bringing together the nation's labor unions garnered enough signatures to hold a plebiscite on the matter, although the Electoral Court's final decision is still pending. Lacalle insisted that if the Pit-Cnt has things its way “retirees” and all “future generations” would be harmed. If the signatures are validated, the popular consultation will go ahead in October simultaneously with the presidential elections.

“All political parties said it was urgent to reform social security,” Lacalle argued about a bill passed by Congress after a 180º shift from his campaign promises. “Some important leaders said that the retirement age had to be lowered,” but in the end “some of these political parties were in government for 15 years and did not promote it,” the president went on.

Repealing the social security reform would be “detrimental to retirees but, above all, to future generations” because “there is talk of a social dialogue, and there has already been a social dialogue; what did not exist was the courage to carry out a necessary reform as this government did,” Lacalle stressed.

If the plebiscite goes ahead, Lacalle confirmed he would defend the current mechanism but insisted there was “no hurry” to elaborate on the issue while promising to do so “when the time comes.” In the president's view, “the citizenry has other problems” to deal with first.

Uruguay's main labor unions staged a strike in March last year to protest against the social security reform Lacalle had promised not to alter before being elected.