El Ciudadano
Original article: “Lo del quiosco fue un exabrupto”: Marcel desmiente a Quiroz y afirma que fondos soberanos aumentaron con Boric
Former Finance Minister Mario Marcel has refuted claims made by current minister Jorge Quiroz, stating that sovereign funds grew during Gabriel Boric’s presidency.
«The kiosk comment was outrageous,» Marcel stated in an interview with Radio Infinita, regarding Quiroz’s statements in the Diario Financiero that criticized Boric and the economic management of his administration.
The controversy ignited after the former president claimed on social media platform X that during his governance, fiscal debt grew by only 3.7%. In response, Quiroz suggested that this figure was achieved by “emptying the sovereign funds, reducing the state’s working capital to zero and draining the treasury.”
«In other words, managing as if it were a kiosk,” questioned Quiroz.
Marcel responded to these remarks by saying: «I consider the kiosk comment outrageous; I honestly don’t recall any finance minister using such language, especially when referring to a former president of the Republic.»
«Statistics Show Otherwise»: Key Data That Refutes Quiroz
He also dismissed the accusation of a supposed draining of sovereign funds, asserting that official data contradicts this claim.
«What surprises me is the notion of draining the sovereign funds, because the Ministry of Finance’s statistics show that is not the case. From December 2022 to December 2025, the sovereign funds, primarily the Economic Social Stabilization Fund (FEES) and the Pension Reserve Fund (FRP), actually increased,» stated the former secretary of state.
When asked what happened before the government transition, he firmly replied: «Nothing happened with the sovereign funds; there was no special maneuver.»
«This is all documented in the Ministry of Finance’s statistics. I don’t understand why (Quiroz) raises it; I honestly can’t explain why he brought it up with such intensity,» Marcel pointed out.
The Adverse Scenario of 2022: The Unfunded Cost of the PGU and the War in Ukraine
The economist also defended the fiscal management during Boric’s administration, recalling the economic challenges faced upon their arrival at La Moneda on March 11, 2022, as described in his book titled: «The Rollercoaster: Chronicle of a Crisis and How It Was Overcome«.
He noted that the transition from President Piñera’s government to President Boric’s was not straightforward.
«We came with a structural deficit of 10.6%, effective 8%, rising inflation (…). The last projections from President Piñera’s administration forecasted a 3.5% economic growth for 2022 and 4% inflation, yet by the time of the government transition, inflation was already reaching double digits in March 2022. Additionally, in January 2022, the Guaranteed Universal Pension (PGU) was approved with funding clearly inadequate; only $600 million was allocated for something costing $2,000 that year, and for the following years, the tax measures theoretically covered 70%. Essentially, two-thirds of the cost went unfunded, and only a third was covered. In practice, it was even less, roughly half,” he explained.
Marcel: «We Prefer to Solve Problems Rather Than Blame the Previous Government»
Nevertheless, he highlighted that despite the challenging context, they did not engage in «criticizing the previous government or complaining», but sought ways to tackle the inherited issues.
«We focused on determining how to absorb these challenges, how to structure a fiscal policy that would assist the Central Bank in reducing inflation, addressing the cost of the PGU, managing the debt with electricity generators that had accumulated due to frozen rates, and on top of that, we faced rising fuel and food prices due to the war in Ukraine. Yet, we dedicated ourselves to solving these problems rather than blaming the previous government,” Marcel stated during his discussion with Radio Infinita.
In the view of the former finance head, the primary responsibility of a government to its citizens is that it “focuses on its duties, solving problems”.
«This, let’s say, I prefer to frame in terms of what I experienced, rather than what is happening in the current context, but I believe the contrast is significant,” he concluded.
Featuring a photo of Marcel (on the left) and Quiroz.
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