The Neuquén judiciary has given signs that it wants a good relationship with the governor-elect, Rolando Figueroa. He did not even take office and three members of the Superior Court of Justice (TSJ) elected by Jorge Sapag- Soledad Gennari (president), Evaldo Moya and Alfredo Elosú Larumbe- they gathered the votes to displace the electoral judge Alejandra Bozzano and name Matthias Nicolini, a trusted man of the new president. Not only that: one day before the proclamation of authorities The prosecutor’s office stepped on the accelerator and ordered searches and arrests in the investigation for the fraud with social plans, the scandal that stained the end of the management of Omar Gutiérrez.
At this juncture, the TSJ has to determine who will occupy the position of general administrator of the Judiciary, the contest that has been pending for almost a year and remains vacant.
It is far from being a minor position: it is the highest hierarchy within the judicial administrative ladder and its salary is equivalent to that of a Chamber judge. The selection is discretionary: it is the four members and the member who interview and define. They don’t even have a legal deadline to cover it.
The list of applicants was published in August 2022 and since then it has been macerating. The elections of April 16, 2023 passed, the MPN lost, and that changed the chances of some.
Among the fourteen registered Jorge Isolabella, general coordinator of the Ministry of Economy, had a certain advantage. He is no longer a number one, but maybe he can keep the support. Nestor Martin, who is in charge of the box of the Neuquén Social Security Institute, had also registered. Would someone choose the administrator who raised that the deficit of the pension system of the province “is not correctable”?
One of the contestants appeared at the transition table representing the elected government: Cecilia Bercovich, who comes from having worked with Figueroa in the Legislature. It may be that his place is the cabinet, no one knows for sure. For now it is within the menu that the TSJ has.
There is another candidate who is probably the one with the least chance, since he is within the Social Development structure: Thomas Siegenthaler, provincial coordinator of administration of the ministry. He is not charged in the case of scams with social plans, but prosecutors Pablo Vignaroli and Juan Manuel Narváez have already announced that they will expand the accusations.
The highest court may be inclined to choose a current member of the Judiciary: for example Karina Queen, who temporarily occupies the position, the Jorge Diezwho is deputy director of judicial infrastructure.
The rest of the list is completed: Viviana Den Hartog, Sandra Toro, Darío Brugues, Carlos Domina, Gustavo Fernández, Nancy Fernández, Federico Pino and Ariel Sosa.
Whoever is elected will depend directly on the presidency of the TSJ, and among its functions will be to put together the budget and participate in salary negotiations with the Sejun union.
In any case, any governor knows that to have real interference in the highest court, members are needed. From Jorge Sobisch onwards, each one took care of fighting those places of power.