Horacio Massaccesi
Encyclopedia
Horacio Massaccesi is an Argentine politician and former Governor of Río Negro Province
.
family in Villa Regina
, then a largely agricultural town on the banks of the Río Negro ("Black River") in Argentina's region of Patagonia
. He joined the centrist Radical Civic Union
(UCR) in 1974, while in law school, and on Argentina's return to democracy
in 1983, Massaccesi was elected to the Provincial Legislature. Governor Osvaldo Álvarez Guerrero
named him Minister of Government (similar to a Chief of Staff) in 1984, a recognition which led to his election to the Argentine Chamber of Deputies
(Lower House of Congress) in 1985.
Elected by a 38-35% margin over populist Justicialist Party
candidate Remo Costanzo, Massaccesi became one of only two UCR Governors elected in 1987
, after the popular Álvarez Guerrero was termed out of office. Upon taking office, Massaccesi advanced a new Provincial Constitution. Enacted in 1988, the document allowed him to run for reelection. Following Justicialist Party candidate Carlos Menem
's landslide defeat of the UCR for the presidency in 1989, Massaccesi adopted a pragmatic stance towards the unpredictable Menem, distancing himself with Álvarez Guerrero. Continuing financial instability, however, led Menem's new Economy Minister, Domingo Cavallo
, to retain around US$60 million in revenue sharing
funds derived from the orchard
-rich Río Negro Province's growing export earnings. The province, which in turn owed the central bank US$100 million, found itself in circumstances not unlike most provinces in Argentina at the time.
branch of the public Bank of the Province of Río Negro, wherein he signed a decree authorizing the seizure of nearly US$17 million from an account held by the Central Bank of Argentina. Explaining that "I was told repeatedly that no help was coming. What were my options - to not pay my people?"
Massaccesi was indicted by Justice Minister León Arslanian
for grand larceny
, Cavallo ordered the province's accounts frozen, and the President hinted that a conservator
would be appointed in the governor's stead; ultimately, however, the wave of goodwill Massaccesi earned nationally led Menem to suspend any action against the "Robin Hood of Patagonia." By mutual agreement, the province repaid the central bank within 30 days of the event.
The Governor was reelected that September
by a margin of 46-27%, following which he became a conditional ally of the Menem Administration, whose free market policies were a reversal of his populist 1989 platform. He and Menem also shared a personal affinity, including an interest in tennis
and River Plate
(one of Argentina's preeminent football teams). Massaccesi supported the newly-returned President of the UCR, former President Raúl Alfonsín
, in his 1993 political overtures to the then-popular Menem. Hoping to avoid defeat in the upcoming 1995 elections, Alfonsín negotiated the Olivos Pact with Menem, by which the Argentine Constitution would be extensively amended
to allow the President reelection - in return for an expansion of the Argentine Senate
and other changes designed to favor the UCR.
Congressman Antonio "La Tuta" Hernández, received 17% of the vote (placing third and dealing the UCR its worst national defeat, up to then). Termed out as Governor, Massaccesi left a province in financial staits, though he earned plaudits for his policies streamlining the bloated provincial government and for supporting new casino
s, for instance. The UCR retained the post and he was elected to the Argentine Senate
that November, though charges pending on the 1991 "Robin Hood" incident barred him from the Senate until 1997.
Massaccesi founded Noticias de la Costa, a Viedma newspaper, with his second wife Patricia Querejeta in 1996. Keeping a low profile in the Senate, he did not run for reelection in 2001 (a disastrous year for the UCR, which had gained the presidency in 1999 on an Alliance
ticket with the center-left Frepaso). Distanced from the UCR, he endorsed centrist Peronist candidate Adolfo Rodríguez Saá
's failed 2003 presidential bid. Rodríguez Saa, a member of the UCR's main opposition, the Justicialist Party, was Governor of nearby San Luis Province
. That year, Massaccesi published Haceme Senador (Make Me a Senator), a criticism of the role of the media in the political process.
of public funds by a federal court in General Roca on May 6, 2005, for his seizure of the central bank funds in 1991, and given a supended jail sentence, as well as being barred from public office. Massaccesi appealed the decision on the grounds that the ruling implied that the funds were absconded with for personal gain, when they were used in their entirety to pay public salaries (the courts have thus far denied him an appeal).
Massaccesi and his wife continue to live in Viedma, where they devote their time to their newsdaily, Noticias de la Costa.
Río Negro Province
Río Negro is a province of Argentina, located at the northern edge of Patagonia. Neighboring provinces are from the south clockwise Chubut, Neuquén, Mendoza, La Pampa and Buenos Aires. To the east lies the Atlantic Ocean.Its capital is Viedma...
.
Early career
Massaccesi was born in 1948 to an Italian ArgentineItalian Argentine
An Italian Argentine is a person born in Argentina of Italian ancestry. It is estimated up to 25 million Argentines have some degree of Italian descent...
family in Villa Regina
Villa Regina
-Overview:Situated on the upper Río Negro valley, the city was established in 1924 by land prospector Juan Mión, who named the new settlement in honor of the First Lady of Argentina at the time, Regina Pacini de Alvear...
, then a largely agricultural town on the banks of the Río Negro ("Black River") in Argentina's region of Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
. He joined the centrist Radical Civic Union
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union is a political party in Argentina. The party's positions on issues range from liberal to social democratic. The UCR is a member of the Socialist International. Founded in 1891 by radical liberals, it is the oldest political party active in Argentina...
(UCR) in 1974, while in law school, and on Argentina's return to democracy
Argentine general election, 1983
The Argentine general election of 1983 was held on 30 October and marked the return of Democracy after the 1976's dictatorship self-known as National Reorganization Process...
in 1983, Massaccesi was elected to the Provincial Legislature. Governor Osvaldo Álvarez Guerrero
Osvaldo Álvarez Guerrero
Osvaldo Álvarez Guerrero was an Argentine Radical Civic Union politician. He served as Governor of Río Negro Province and as a National Deputy....
named him Minister of Government (similar to a Chief of Staff) in 1984, a recognition which led to his election to the Argentine Chamber of Deputies
Argentine Chamber of Deputies
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress. This Chamber holds exclusive rights to create taxes, to draft troops, and to accuse the President, the ministers and the members of the Supreme Court before the Senate....
(Lower House of Congress) in 1985.
Elected by a 38-35% margin over populist Justicialist Party
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party , or PJ, is a Peronist political party in Argentina, and the largest component of the Peronist movement.The party was led by Néstor Kirchner, President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007, until his death on October 27, 2010. The current Argentine president, Cristina Fernández de...
candidate Remo Costanzo, Massaccesi became one of only two UCR Governors elected in 1987
Argentine legislative election, 1987
The Argentine legislative elections of 1987 were held on 6 September. Voters chose their legislators and governors and, with a turnout of 83.6%, it produced the following results:-Argentine Congress:-Background:...
, after the popular Álvarez Guerrero was termed out of office. Upon taking office, Massaccesi advanced a new Provincial Constitution. Enacted in 1988, the document allowed him to run for reelection. Following Justicialist Party candidate Carlos Menem
Carlos Menem
Carlos Saúl Menem is an Argentine politician who was President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. He is currently an Argentine National Senator for La Rioja Province.-Early life:...
's landslide defeat of the UCR for the presidency in 1989, Massaccesi adopted a pragmatic stance towards the unpredictable Menem, distancing himself with Álvarez Guerrero. Continuing financial instability, however, led Menem's new Economy Minister, Domingo Cavallo
Domingo Cavallo
Domingo Felipe "Mingo" Cavallo is an Argentine economist and politician. He has a long history of public service and is known for implementing the Convertibilidad plan, which fixed the dollar-peso exchange rate at 1:1 between 1991 and 2001, which brought the Argentine inflation rate down from over...
, to retain around US$60 million in revenue sharing
Revenue sharing
Revenue sharing has multiple, related meanings depending on context.In business, revenue sharing refers to the sharing of profits and losses among different groups. One form shares between the general partner and limited partners in a limited partnership...
funds derived from the orchard
Orchard
An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees which are grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive...
-rich Río Negro Province's growing export earnings. The province, which in turn owed the central bank US$100 million, found itself in circumstances not unlike most provinces in Argentina at the time.
Robin Hood of patagonia
This leading to a budgetary crisis in his province and an inability to pay some 30,000 provincial employees, on July 4, 1991 Governor Massaccesi entered the General RocaGeneral Roca
General Roca may refer to a number of things and places named after Argentine military Julio Argentino Roca:Places;Argentina*General Roca, Río Negro*General Roca Department, Río Negro*General Roca Department, Córdoba...
branch of the public Bank of the Province of Río Negro, wherein he signed a decree authorizing the seizure of nearly US$17 million from an account held by the Central Bank of Argentina. Explaining that "I was told repeatedly that no help was coming. What were my options - to not pay my people?"
Massaccesi was indicted by Justice Minister León Arslanian
León Arslanián
León Arslanián is an Argentine lawyer, jurist and public official who notably served as Chief Justice in the tribunal that presided over the 1985 Trial of the Juntas.-Life and times:...
for grand larceny
Grand Larceny
Grand Larceny is a 1987 thriller film directed by Jeannot Szwarc and starring Marilu Henner, Ian McShane, Omar Sharif and Louis Jourdan.-Plot summary:...
, Cavallo ordered the province's accounts frozen, and the President hinted that a conservator
Conservator
A Conservator is a judge delegated by the pope to defend certain privileged classes of persons — as universities, Roman Catholic religious orders, chapters, the poor — from manifest or notorious injury or violence, without recourse to a judicial process...
would be appointed in the governor's stead; ultimately, however, the wave of goodwill Massaccesi earned nationally led Menem to suspend any action against the "Robin Hood of Patagonia." By mutual agreement, the province repaid the central bank within 30 days of the event.
The Governor was reelected that September
Argentine legislative election, 1991
The Argentine legislative elections of 1991 were held between August and December, though most polls took place on 8 September. Voters chose their legislators and governors and, with a turnout of 79.9%, it produced the following results:-Argentine Congress:...
by a margin of 46-27%, following which he became a conditional ally of the Menem Administration, whose free market policies were a reversal of his populist 1989 platform. He and Menem also shared a personal affinity, including an interest in tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
and River Plate
Club Atlético River Plate
Club Atlético River Plate is an Argentine sports club based in the Nuñez neighborhood of Buenos Aires. It is best known for its professional football team, which currently competes in Nacional B, the second tier of Argentine football....
(one of Argentina's preeminent football teams). Massaccesi supported the newly-returned President of the UCR, former President Raúl Alfonsín
Raúl Alfonsín
Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín was an Argentine lawyer, politician and statesman, who served as the President of Argentina from December 10, 1983, to July 8, 1989. Alfonsín was the first democratically-elected president of Argentina following the military government known as the National Reorganization...
, in his 1993 political overtures to the then-popular Menem. Hoping to avoid defeat in the upcoming 1995 elections, Alfonsín negotiated the Olivos Pact with Menem, by which the Argentine Constitution would be extensively amended
1994 reform of the Argentine Constitution
The 1994 amendment to the Constitution of Argentina was approved on 22 August by a Constitutional Assembly that met in the twin cities of Santa Fe and Paraná...
to allow the President reelection - in return for an expansion of the Argentine Senate
Argentine Senate
The Argentine Senate is the upper house of the Argentine National Congress. It has 72 senators: three for each province and three for the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires...
and other changes designed to favor the UCR.
Bid for the presidency
His popularity and staunch support for the pact earned Massaccesi Alfonsín's support for the UCR nomination, which the Governor won in 1994 by a margin of 2-to-1 over Federico Storani, a young UCR figure opposed to the changes. The low turnout in the UCR's 1994 primaries bode poorly for Argentina's oldest existing political party, however, and in 1995, Massaccesi and his running mate, Córdoba ProvinceCórdoba Province (Argentina)
Córdoba is a province of Argentina, located in the center of the country. Neighboring provinces are : Santiago del Estero, Santa Fe, Buenos Aires, La Pampa, San Luis, La Rioja and Catamarca...
Congressman Antonio "La Tuta" Hernández, received 17% of the vote (placing third and dealing the UCR its worst national defeat, up to then). Termed out as Governor, Massaccesi left a province in financial staits, though he earned plaudits for his policies streamlining the bloated provincial government and for supporting new casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
s, for instance. The UCR retained the post and he was elected to the Argentine Senate
Argentine Senate
The Argentine Senate is the upper house of the Argentine National Congress. It has 72 senators: three for each province and three for the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires...
that November, though charges pending on the 1991 "Robin Hood" incident barred him from the Senate until 1997.
Massaccesi founded Noticias de la Costa, a Viedma newspaper, with his second wife Patricia Querejeta in 1996. Keeping a low profile in the Senate, he did not run for reelection in 2001 (a disastrous year for the UCR, which had gained the presidency in 1999 on an Alliance
Alliance for Work, Justice and Education
The Alliance for Work, Justice and Education was a party coalition in Argentina around the turn of the third millennium...
ticket with the center-left Frepaso). Distanced from the UCR, he endorsed centrist Peronist candidate Adolfo Rodríguez Saá
Adolfo Rodríguez Saá
Adolfo Rodríguez Saá Páez Montero is an Argentine Peronist politician. He was the governor of the province of San Luis during several terms, and briefly served as President of Argentina.-Biography:...
's failed 2003 presidential bid. Rodríguez Saa, a member of the UCR's main opposition, the Justicialist Party, was Governor of nearby San Luis Province
San Luis Province
San Luis is a province of Argentina located near the geographical center of the country . Neighboring provinces are, from the north clockwise, La Rioja, Córdoba, La Pampa, Mendoza and San Juan.-History:...
. That year, Massaccesi published Haceme Senador (Make Me a Senator), a criticism of the role of the media in the political process.
Massaccesi today
The former Governor was convicted of embezzlementEmbezzlement
Embezzlement is the act of dishonestly appropriating or secreting assets by one or more individuals to whom such assets have been entrusted....
of public funds by a federal court in General Roca on May 6, 2005, for his seizure of the central bank funds in 1991, and given a supended jail sentence, as well as being barred from public office. Massaccesi appealed the decision on the grounds that the ruling implied that the funds were absconded with for personal gain, when they were used in their entirety to pay public salaries (the courts have thus far denied him an appeal).
Massaccesi and his wife continue to live in Viedma, where they devote their time to their newsdaily, Noticias de la Costa.