President Gabriel Boric sharply criticized the mass absence of deputies that caused a session in the Chamber to fail last week, urging them to prioritize social laws. His remarks, made during the inauguration of a kindergarten in San Felipe, drew immediate retorts from opposition legislators who recalled the president's own past absences. The exchange highlights growing tensions between the executive and legislative branches.
During the inauguration of the Jardín Infantil y Sala Cuna “Rayún del Valle” in San Felipe, President Gabriel Boric rebuked the lack of quorum in the Chamber of Deputies that thwarted a session last Tuesday. “It would be much better to dedicate legislative time to that, instead of having time where sessions fail because deputies don't show up to work or because they dedicate themselves to other things,” he stated, urging approval of projects like the universal childcare law and ending the CAE system in higher education.
Chamber President José Miguel Castro (RN) countered that he had already sent the anti-CAE bill to the Senate and that childcare entered via that route. He recalled a similar failure in 2021 when Boric and Minister Camila Vallejo, then deputies, were absent. “More than looking at the speck in another's eye, I would ask the President to quickly send a bill to advance payments to people regarding light bills, due to his government's inefficiency,” Castro added.
Other legislators joined in: Vice President Eric Aedo (DC) stressed respect for institutions and highlighted approvals like the wood theft law and renewals of the state of exception in the Southern Macrozone. Frank Sauerbaum (RN) accused Boric of behaving like a “university leader” and recalled his poor attendance as a deputy. Felipe Donoso (UDI) described Boric's past presence as “paupérrima” or dismal.
From the government side, Deputy Jaime Araya (ind. PPD) tweeted: “This generalization he makes is a dirty tackle... the penultimate time a session failed, a certain Deputy Boric didn't show up to work”.
The incident unfolds amid frictions over the Budget Law bill, which includes $151 million additional for ex-presidents, and the light billing error that prompted constitutional accusation threats against former Minister Diego Pardow. Minister Vallejo called such accusations “a tremendous distractor”.