The Governor of Santa Fe, Maximiliano Pullaro, and the President of Argentina, Javier Milei, presided over the main Flag Day ceremony in Rosario on Saturday, marking the 206th anniversary of the death of General Manuel Belgrano.
The ceremony took place in front of the National Flag Monument and was attended by national, provincial and municipal authorities, representatives of the security forces, students and residents. Also in attendance were the Mayor of Rosario, Pablo Javkin, and members of the national cabinet.
Following the raising of the national flag, Pullaro spoke of “the honour of being here as governor of the Invincible Province of Santa Fe”, and paid tribute to Belgrano. “He did not belong to any one side; he belonged to the cause of the homeland,” he stated.
The President emphasised that the flag’s designer viewed education as an essential prerequisite for freedom. “Belgrano thought of those who were left behind and maintained that freedom without education was a trap, and that a people without access to knowledge was a people without a future,” he said.
He also maintained that freedom and equality were the cornerstones of Belgrano’s philosophy. “Belgrano understood that a nation was not measured solely by its growth, but by how that growth impacted and reached every single citizen,” he remarked.
Elsewhere in his speech, Pullaro stated that Santa Fe is committed to “showcasing achievements rather than complaining” and highlighted the progress made in terms of security in Rosario.
“Two years ago, this city was afraid of its streets. Today, homicides have fallen by 64 per cent, and shootings and property crimes have also decreased. Today, the law reigns, and fear has shifted to the other side,” he stated.
The governor attributed these results to coordination between the different levels of government and thanked the national government for its support during the city’s most challenging times: “This wasn’t magic. It was determination, investment, a systematic approach and teamwork. We were able to demonstrate that when the different levels of government work together, results follow,” he said.
Pullaro then linked the restoration of security to a strategy of economic development and infrastructure strengthening.
“We are restoring the peace and order we were promised, but we are also building productive infrastructure because we are convinced that order without progress is not enough,” he stated.
Ongoing projects
In this regard, he pointed out that the Province currently has 1,840 projects under way and stated that, over the last two years, investment has been equivalent to that made during the previous eight years.
“In Santa Fe, projects are carried out by keeping costs down, with transparency and without corruption,” he emphasised whilst reviewing projects being developed in different regions of the province.
Towards the end of his address, the governor called for consensus-building amongst those in positions of government responsibility and highlighted Santa Fe’s contribution to national development.
“Santa Fe produces and exports; it is agriculture, industry and trade. It makes an enormous contribution to the national government’s resources. In this federal country, we need those resources to be reinvested in productive infrastructure to kick-start the economy in the interior and help Argentina get off the ground once and for all,” he concluded.
As the ceremony ended, Milei stated that “the flag is the symbol that unites us and represents us as a people” and recalled Belgrano as “a man passionate about education and progress”. “When we look at the flag, we see a man who envisaged a nation that did not yet exist. It was in Rosario that the nation began to take shape,” he said.
For his part, Javkin highlighted the city’s recovery following the crisis of violence it had endured in recent years. “With a plan and by working together, we—the good guys—turned the tide against the bad guys. Fear has switched sides,” he said.
“Today, Rosario stands firm and strong. It has returned greater and more vibrant than ever, with the conviction that we will never again yield a single millimetre between peace and fear,” concluded the mayor.
