Argentine President Javier Milei posted the cryptic message “Conspiranoico yo? Fin” (“Conspiratorial me? The Finish”) to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, before launching a series of critical posts targeting Javier Madanes Quintanilla, the owner of Fate, a tire manufacturer that announced its definitive closure on Wednesday.
The closure of Fate will leave more than 900 employees without work, according to reports from Diario de Cuyo. The timing of the announcement comes on the eve of a vote in the Chamber of Deputies on labor reform legislation.
Following his initial post, Milei amplified criticism of Madanes Quintanilla circulating on the social media platform. “El Gordo Dan,” a prominent government-aligned X user, alleged that Madanes Quintanilla had been “a lover of the Kirchnerist governments” and ironically noted his company’s bankruptcy declaration, referencing the impending labor reform vote.
The government has attributed the closure of Fate to “extreme” labor unions and characterized it as part of a broader industrial restructuring, as reported by Diario de Cuyo. No further details regarding the government’s assessment of the unions’ role or the specifics of the industrial restructuring were immediately available.
The labor reform bill currently under consideration in the Chamber of Deputies seeks to overhaul Argentina’s labor laws. Details of the proposed changes have not been released.
