The president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, has warned that extending the freeze on public transport fares, adopted after the protests of three years ago, «is not sustainable» and has advocated instead to minimize the possible effects of the foreseeable price increase on the users of this system.
The rise in prices was precisely one of the main triggers of the so-called ‘social outburst’, but Boric considers it unacceptable to continue applying the same subsidies, contrary to what some of his partners in the ruling coalition, Apruebo Dignidad, are demanding.
«We know that the freezing of tariffs for more than three consecutive years is not sustainable in time», the president has defended from Thailand, where he is attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC), according to the Chilean newspaper ‘El Mercurio’.
Thus, although he admitted that «in times of economic crisis» it is necessary to adopt support measures, he advocated looking for other types of formulas to «protect Chilean families and the fiscal coffers» at the same time. Boric has promised that «as soon as possible» he will present his proposals, once he has reached agreements with both the Treasury and Transport.
Prices have soared in Chile by 12.8 percent year-on-year, according to official data for the month of October, which show a rise of five tenths of a percent compared to September.
