Gioja absent from press conference last night

Thursday, March 10, 2016

Kirchnerite lawmakers want binding referendum on holdouts bill

The FpV yesterday proposed to hold a binding referendum to decide whether the holdouts deal proposed by the government in New York courts should be accepted.

In a press conference in which national lawmaker and former Economy minister Axel Kicillof and caucus leader Héctor Recalde were the main speakers, the opposition party said it should be up to the population to decide directly whether the offer that was initially accepted by the “vulture” funds led by Paul Singer should be approved.

A similar measure had initially been proposed by Workers’ Leftist Front (FIT) lawmakers.

A notable absentee from FpV’s press conference was lawmaker José Luis Gioja, one of the most influential figures of the party, seen as capable of building bridges between those close to former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and the Peronist governors negotiating with President Mauricio Macri. His position on the holdout bill will be key for FpV’s future.

Meanwhile, Argentina reached agreements worth US$190 million yesterday with another group of holdout funds and creditors, as part of its effort to end the 15-year litigation with the “vulture” funds.

“I am very pleased to report that the Republic of Argentina continues to reach agreements in principle with bondholders, both large and small, holding defaulted Argentine bonds,” court-appointed mediator Daniel Pollack said in a press release. “The range and diversity of the settlements are encouraging.”

The settlements included BN Paribas, GMO, Carlo Regazzoni, Elazar Romano, Grazia Valenti, La Societa Ymus and Tomasso Zappoli Thyrion.

Nevertheless, they are subject to the lifting of the Sovereign Payment and the Lock laws by Congress and to United States District Judge Thomas Griesa lifting the injunction against Argentina.

— Herald staff