Senator Víctor Pérez: "Vidal cannot use the Ministry of Defense as a propaganda machine"

SANTIAGO.- Adding to the critiques already expressed by Alianza senators, the secretary general of the UDI, Víctor Pérez, affirmed that Francisco Vidal "should understand that the Minister of Defense cannot run the ministry like a propaganda machine, because it puts national security at risk".

This comes in the aftermath of Vidal's announcement that the F-16 aircrafts had been purchased from the Netherlands when, in reality, the contract had yet to be signed.

In Pérez' judgment, "Vidal is a threat to the country as the head of Defense, because he simply does not possess the criteria and has exposed the country to international ridicule on a very sensitive matter".

"What has taken place with the F-16 planes in the Netherlands requires more than a good explanation and in any serious government administration, a mess up of this scale would have led to the Minister of Defense's removal from office". 

The UDI leader reiterated that "the country cannot take missteps in matters such as these, much less when we have the threat of neighboring countries who are questioning valid international treaties".