Original article: Montalva denuncia que Minvu “congela toda su gestión administrativa” mientras el gobierno promete agilizar la reconstrucción
Deputy José Montalva (PPS) has accused the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (Minvu) of «freezing all its administrative management» while the government of José Antonio Kast unveils its «National Reconstruction Plan,» promising to expedite residential solutions in areas affected by disasters.
In a video shared on his social media, the parliamentarian announced his intention to approach the Comptroller’s Office regarding an instructive issued by the Undersecretariat of Housing, which instructs officials at the Housing and Urbanization Service (Serviu) to refrain from dispatching documentation and to suspend the processing of administrative acts until further notice.
“Did you know that on March 13, when the new government officials took office, the Ministry of Housing issued instructions to all Servius across the country, stating that they should halt all operations, with some exceptions that are not clearly defined, indicating that nothing can be done indefinitely?» he remarked.
Montalva: «It cannot be that under the pretext of reviewing, governance is paralyzed»
The instructions were outlined in circular 193, sent to the regional housing authorities and Serviu from Arica to Punta Arenas and signed by Tomás de Tezanos, chief of staff at the Undersecretariat of Housing and Urban Development.
“In other words, all the committees waiting for their own homes and seeking to advance their processes are stuck indefinitely. Therefore, as a deputy, I will formally reach out to the Comptroller and the Ministry to clarify specifically which actions they intend to freeze and for how long, to provide certainty to the public,” Montalva stated.
“It cannot be that under the pretext of reviewing, governance is paralyzed; governments are elected to govern and cannot halt services because that also impedes efforts to meet the most urgent demand, which is housing, the housing solution,” he emphasized.
The legislator views it as contradictory that Kast is out in the field saying that reconstruction must be accelerated while at the same time, the housing authority is issuing instructions to freeze all activities.
“This makes no sense, and that’s why we will request explanations and demand oversight from the Comptroller,” he reiterated.
The deputy made it clear that he fully supports conducting audits and reviews, but suggested that «with one hand, we must audit, review, and supervise, while with the other hand, we must work and progress.»
“One cannot paralyze the other,” he stressed.
In a message that accompanied the video, the parliamentarian pointed out that “the housing emergency cannot wait for audits without deadlines.”
“We will formally reach out to the Comptroller to demand that continuity of service is respected. We cannot gamble with the needs of families,” he asserted.
According to Bio Bío Chile, the circular aims to organize and review the flow of institutional documentation and administrative actions with the suspension of operations.
Servius would have the opportunity to dispatch documents to meet legal deadlines and requirements from oversight or judicial bodies, or those deemed “urgent for service continuity,” however, they are obligated to inform the Undersecretariat’s cabinet in advance.
Officials who fail to comply with the orders risk «facing consequences associated with administrative responsibilities.»
