Original article: Fares Jadue fustiga «uso político» de Kast tras choque que costó la vida a niño en Recoleta

Mayor Fares Jadue Criticizes José Antonio Kast’s «Political Exploitation» Following Tragic Accident Claiming Child’s Life in Recoleta

Fares Jadue, the mayor of Recoleta, condemned the «political exploitation» by presidential candidate José Antonio Kast of a tragic accident in the area that resulted in the death of a 12-year-old boy.

The traffic incident occurred on Monday afternoon when a school van carrying six children and two adults was struck by a car at the intersection of Santos Dumont and Humorista Carlos Helo. The car was occupied by two criminals fleeing after committing a robbery, and all passengers in the school van were injured. Unfortunately, Esteban Hermosilla, a 12-year-old sixth grader at Colegio Rafael Sanhueza Lizardi, lost his life.

In an interview on La Mañanera, hosted by Javier Pineda Olcay, the mayor referred to this event as a «tragedy, very sad and regrettable,» affecting «a child, a family, a school community, and a well-known school in the area. A school community to which we belonged.»

«I also studied at that school,» commented the mayor, noting that the municipality has been supporting the process from the beginning.

«We were present at the time of the accident, we asked for all procedures to be expedited, and we contacted various government officials who made themselves available to speed up, among other things, the processes with the Legal Medical Service (SML),» he stated.

The mayor also filed a lawsuit against those responsible for the crash, Claudio Enrique Gaete Quiroz and Iván Esteban Gómez Obreque, both Chilean citizens, who were apprehended at the scene.

This legal action, submitted to the Third Guarantee Court of Santiago, seeks to hold the defendants accountable for homicide, attempted homicide, and injuries, under traffic laws and the Criminal Code.

In the interview with La Mañanera, the public administrator and history graduate discussed the authority he holds as a local leader in such cases.

«I am not the one who pursues the crime, and there is a very regrettable situation here; while I understand the distress and frustration of the citizens and that there are citizens who want to act when witnessing a criminal situation, one is a public entity, and it is necessary to call for responsibility. The most responsible course of action is to first assist the victim of such a situation and then make the appropriate reports for those who pursue crime to do so,» he emphasized.

Criticism of Kast’s Political Exploitation and the «Fanfare» Surrounding the Tragedy

Mayor Fares Jadue criticized those who use such tragedies as the one that occurred in Recoleta for political purposes.

«It is very unfortunate when these issues lend themselves to a certain fanfare,» he said.

«Furthermore, I want to be quite harsh on this; no matter how much they confront a mayor and how many people feel emotionally affected by this situation, these things are so distant that sometimes I doubt the genuineness of those feelings. I believe these actions are sometimes just for show, and I question that,» he underscored.

The mayor referred to those political figures who continually attack the state, asserting that «it does not work, that the state is ineffective, and that the reasons for this are the lack of state presence,» and that «they are constantly criticizing that the state should have more tools and still cannot do things well.»

He mentioned the presidential letter from the Republican Party’s José Antonio Kast, who accused the government on social media of not prioritizing the protection of Chileans’ lives.

«Kast even went out to say that this was almost the responsibility of the state’s inefficiency,» Jadue noted.

«We understand the problems that exist in our country’s justice system, and they are numerous, from lack of justice to efficiency and effectiveness. This must be addressed from that perspective, and the institutions responsible for this must act, but also with the necessary tools,» he concluded.

The Recoleta mayor challenged that he was severely questioned for belonging to a political sector and being a member of the Communist Party, «as if my political sector were the one representing setbacks in security in this country,» he said.

«When Congress meets, the discussions held and analyses made are directly aimed at ensuring laws consider all these aspects, including social ones, to understand the phenomena of law. Thus, it is very complex when this occurs and a situation is exploited. In fact, Esteban’s brother stated in an interview, a child who spoke very clearly and from the heart, he himself pointed out that this could not be used for political exploitation,» he stated.

Municipal Powers in Security: The Limits of Preventive Action

When asked about the actual capabilities of municipalities concerning security, Fares Jadue was emphatic: «we cannot detain criminals.»

He explained that in mixed patrolling with Carabineros, «the Carabineros acting are not our personnel; we merely support this effort, and therefore we lack the authority to act.»

«In fact, part of the discussion surrounding municipal security legislation, which aimed to grant municipalities more powers, was fundamentally about increasing our preventive surveillance capabilities. I want to be very clear on this; we should not be discussing whether we use non-lethal weapons; I disagree with that. I cannot put municipal officials who serve in that role at risk. I have a responsibility for their lives too, as they are not trained for that,» he remarked.

«So there is a deeper discussion here. We do not have powers; our task is preventive,» he emphasized.

Security Measures Implemented in Recoleta

However, the mayor highlighted that the municipality has organized with communities to develop prevention projects.

«We have a very community-focused vision, we work with security committees, develop projects to secure environments, situational projects, and investments that help improve and reclaim public space (…) and we have a series of reporting channels that we work on with the Prosecutor’s Office, focusing on different areas of the commune in Patronato, La Vega(…), we have the Safe Street Plan in place, and are investing in that direction,» he explained.

Additionally, in partnership with the regional government, Recoleta will have a security center, involving an investment of approximately 10 billion pesos, «in addition to all the urban investments that will be made.»

This initiative involves deploying 75 patrol cars and monitors through «a plan that the regional government is already approving and that involves the three municipalities: Santiago, Recoleta, and Independencia.»

The mayor indicated that these projects will contribute to reducing crime rates; however, he clarified that the problem is much more structural.

«We need to rethink our society regarding security, and yes, some criticize this saying that we should treat crime with kindness; that is not it, we must be firm but also understand the social phenomena that exist,» he explained, while referring to those responsible for the crash that caused the death of the 12-year-old child.

«The kids who triggered this tragedy were indeed involved with drugs; they had records, and we should analyze what failed from the justice perspective and why they were on the streets. Let us not forget that the government of (Sebastián) Piñera released a significant number of inmates amid the social explosion who had no ideas. (…) Because prisons also have structural problems, but also, what opportunities for reintegration does society eventually provide? What is happening with this family? These youths are not from my commune; they are from the neighboring Huechuraba, from the Pincoya area,» he argued.

«What needs to be done there in Pincoya to intervene those neighborhoods with effective programs that genuinely help correct the paths of youths entering this lifestyle, often due to social frustration, family dissatisfaction, and needs (…) People are not born criminals. Beyond that, I believe that when these situations occur, we must be very firm, and justice must act. We have filed a criminal lawsuit against these individuals for homicide and other associated crimes, as it is crucial for society to understand that this cannot be tolerated,» the authority affirmed.

The Legacy of Daniel Jadue and Ongoing Projects

When asked about the innovative policies continuing in the commune, the mayor highlighted «the model of popular services that we created during ex-mayor Daniel Jadue’s tenure,» of which he was part of the management team.

«He was part of the board responsible for the Popular Pharmacy project, which originally sought to address the issue of high medication costs and out-of-pocket expenses for families, individuals, and those living with complex illnesses. This program is still operational; it has been functioning very well. We recently celebrated the tenth anniversary of our Ricardo Silva Soto Popular Pharmacy and inaugurated a branch in the former Tupac Amaru community, now Villa San Cristóbal, built during the popular unity by architect Miguel Lawner. In fact, the pharmacy is named after Ricardo Silva Soto, annexing Miguel Lawner, which was the name the local community wanted to give it,» he noted.

He also mentioned strengthening the Estaciona Recoleta program, which «is our surface park managed by a corporation that enables financing for both the corporation and the municipality through this, which we do not do via a private concession.»

«We are advancing in protected rental projects with Justice Social II, a new building of 56 apartments (…) we are on the verge of acquiring 60 apartments along with Serviu,» he said.

«We want to resume the Open University project that we had to suspend due to regulatory issues,» the mayor pointed out.

The mayor expressed that one of his administration’s priorities is the «recovery of all our green spaces, and we are working with public-private initiatives on a childhood district in the Cerro Blanco sector, Parque de la Infancia, Cerro San Cristóbal, to connect a child-district axis that involves thinking about urban development in that area, focused on children.»

He also discussed the construction of «a new, modern CESFAM and a mental health center.»

«We have a number of very important projects that will not hit the headlines but are being reported in alternative media,» declared Mayor Fares Jadue.

During this Thursday’s broadcast of La Mañanera, our director also analyzed the latest developments related to the SQM Case.

You can watch the full interview with the mayor of Recoleta below: