Kirchnerism in the Senate also seeks to shield the privatization of Aysa

National Senator Wado de Pedro introduced two initiatives in the Senate aimed at "stopping the privatization of AySA and consolidating state control of the company." The proposals are supported by eleven senators from the Union for the Homeland bloc.

Amid the tension generated by the closure of lists in the province of Buenos Aires, Peronists in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate are trying to show unity and are putting pressure to block the privatization process of the Argentine Water and Sanitation Company (AySA).

The central objective in this context is to build consensus within the opposition to expedite agreements and reject President Javier Milei's decrees that authorized the start of the sale process. A task that doesn't seem easy at first glance.

The draft declaration (S‑1288/25) was sponsored by Senators María Eugenia Duré, Mariano Recalde, Sandra Mendoza, Alicia Kirchner, María Inés Pilatti Vergara, Jesús Fernando Rejal, Oscar Parrilli, and Sergio Leavy. The draft bill (S‑1287/25) also received the signatures of Cristina López and José Emilio Neder, thus completing the eleven senators supporting both initiatives.

The same thing happened in the House of Representatives with a bill sponsored by Representatives Victoria Tolosa Paz and Sabrina Selva. The K-party expressed its "rejection and concern" over Decree No. 493/2025 and Decree No. 494/2025. The former unilaterally modifies—according to the representatives—the current legal framework for the provision of drinking water and sanitation services, while the latter authorizes the privatization of the company through the sale of all its shares.

In the case of De Pedro's initiative, it confirms that "90% of the shares will remain in the hands of the national government and 10% in the hands of the workers." Furthermore, it establishes that "any attempt to modify its purpose, divest essential assets, or alter its shareholding will require the approval of Congress with a superseded two-thirds majority." It also proposes "repealing Decrees 493 and 494/25, which enabled the sale of the company."

Additionally, the senator presented a draft declaration expressing "deep concern and the strongest condemnation" of the presidential decrees, warning that they "represent a setback in the protection of the essential human right of access to safe drinking water and sanitation." The text rejects both privatization and the possibility of discontinuing service for nonpayment.

“Water is a scarce and strategic natural resource, and it is a human right on which the life, health, and development of our people depend,” stated De Pedro. He also emphasized that “AySA is not just a company: it is public health and development for millions of families,” and recalled that “Argentina has made international commitments that oblige it to guarantee universal access to water and sanitation. This law is a tool to fulfill those commitments and ensure that no government can again squander such a basic right.”

A few days ago, the government formalized, through Decree 493/2025, a profound reform of the regulatory framework for the provision of public drinking water and sewage services in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (AMBA). The measure, signed by President Javier Milei and his cabinet, replaces dozens of articles of the previous regime, enables the privatization of Agua y Saneamientos Argentinos SA (AySA), and redefines the conditions for state and private participation in the company.