The mayor of Montevideo, Mario Bergarareferred to the increase in poverty in the capital and maintained that it is a multi-causal phenomenon that cannot be directly linked to departmental collection. “I would not tie one thing to another at the departmental level,” he stated, adding that “Poverty, and child poverty in particular, are sources of substantive concern in the government in general.”.
At a press conference, Bergara pointed out that the Municipality participates through social policies, but stressed that the main leadership corresponds to the national government: “The Municipality participates with its social policies for the purposes of contribute to what are the policies defined by the policy steeringwhich is the national government.”
The communal chief listed different elements that affect the phenomenon: “There are multiple factors: territorial issues, labor issues, trends in the world of work, people experiencing homelessness, mental health, addictions, people who were deprived of liberty and do not find ways to reintegrate.”
In that sense, he stressed that the commune “is committed and co-responsible for being able to improve the lives” of Montevideo residents, although he recognized limitations: “Only the Municipality does not have the conditions, the resources to address this issue on its own, which has a very important dimension.”.
Cleaning and street situation
Asked about the impact of the street situation on the cleanliness of the city, Bergara indicated that there is a direct relationship in some cases. “Sometimes you see garbage around the containers when the container has enough space. In many cases this is associated with rummaging,” he explained.
He added that improving social conditions would also have effects on cleanliness: “As a corollary of resolving how important it is for people not to live on the streets… there would be an improvement in the perception of the issue of cleanliness.”
Regarding Adeom’s union measures, the mayor ruled out that the Municipality is “hostage” to the union, although he admitted impacts on services. “When there are union measures it is noticeablebecause if not, the measure would not have any type of effectiveness,” he said.
“The Municipality maintains a spirit of dialogue but within certain channels,” said Bergara, and announced that there will be a tripartite body in the Ministry of Labor to try to advance a solution.
Safety and car care
In relation to episodes of violence linked to car guards, Bergara distinguished between registered workers and unidentified people. “In massive shows… many people who are not registered take advantage of doing this activity and sometimes the forms involve aggression”, he noted.
He added that “the Municipality can detect these situations, but Who can act is the Ministry of the Interior”.
The mayor highlighted as an example the coordination during the Prado Creolewhere “We had no incidents because there was a coordinated prevention policy”.
