Argentina's Political Truce Is Likely To Collapse Over Lockdown Rules

Growing acrimony continues to dominate the vibe of Argentina, compounded by the protracted lockdown. The South American country witnessed a four-fold rise in the cases tested positive on Sunday -- crossing the 100,000 mark. While the pandemic compelled political figures to put aside their differences and work in unison to tackle the viral outbreak, the harmony wasn’t long lasting.

Things spiraled out of control despite four months of complete lockdown, as old political rivalries couldn’t be contained for long. On one hand; Alberto Fernández, the Argentinean president’s Perónist administration struggles to implement the lockdown in a bid to combat a global health crisis that seems to be spreading like wildfire.

On the other, a strong and defiant opposition is leaving no stone unturned to prevent extended quarantine rules.

While the public seems displeased with the extended lockdown, legislators hint at political foul play. “The pandemic is being politicized, not by political leaders, who are cooperating harmoniously, but at a lower level,” said Martín Barrionuevo, a Perónist senator in the legislature of the province of Corrientes, as per a media outlet.

Critics have attributed the sharp disparity in the spread to the political divide. “Argentina has two realities,” said health strategies under-secretary Alejandro Costa to a media outlet. “One is most of the country -- where transmission has been brought under control -- and the other is the Buenos Aires metropolitan area,” added Costa.

The pandemic pushed the city’s chief of government, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, from Macri’s more conservative party, and Buenos Aires governor, Axel Kicillof, a Perónist firebrand, to sort their differences aside and prioritize health policies. While the animosity is being brought under control by president Fernández; Larreta’s increased eagerness to lift the lockdown is making things harder.

Buenos Aires intents to bring forth a great deal of normalcy through its gradual reopening structure on Friday, despite logging in the highest number of cases tested positive in the coronavirus outbreak in Argentina. Over 38,000 city dwellers have been infected.

Buenos Aires tops the chart in terms of the fatalities rate in Argentina with 230 COVID-19-related deaths per million inhabitants. While the dense population of Buenos Aires is held responsible for the surge in the cases; Raúl Jalil, the governor of the northern province of Catamarca hinted at how the lack of co-operation from its residents had a lot with the depressing numbers.