The government, in agreement with Kirchnerism, made early morning progress in integrating the three members of the General Examination of the Nation (AGN) which correspond to the Chamber of Deputies. The piece It sparked immediate political conflict, but also sparked a legal controversy Background: Could Congress advance a decision in special sessions that was not on the agenda set by the executive branch?
From Pro, the head of the bloc in the House of Representatives, Cristian Ritondodecided to prosecute the incident. He filed an Amparo lawsuit to declare the unconstitutionality of the procedure and the absolute nullity of Resolution 7018-D-2025 that formalized the appointments. The proposal moved the dispute from the venue to the courts and sparked a debate that is now being resolved between constitutional lawyers.
The discussion is not insignificant. In general, there are two competing interpretations. On the one hand, those who claim that during extraordinary sessions Congress can only deal with those matters expressly contained in the presidential summons decree. On the other hand, those who understand that this limitation applies only to the legislative function – the enactment of laws – and does not extend to institutional decisions of each chamber, such as the appointment of authorities to control bodies.
Ritondo’s protection is based on the most restrictive reading. The document looks at what happened that morning and lists three key aspects: the breach of the extraordinary agenda as the appointment of auditors was not included in the call; the irregularity of the procedure, as the motion was introduced into parliamentary work without prior debate or consideration; and the subjugation of the rights of parliamentary minorities.
The same argument had already been made locally. From his bench, he questioned the legality of the procedure and warned that extraordinary sessions could only discuss formal issues of the chamber, such as the swearing-in or the election of authorities, but not issues unrelated to the presidential decree.
Among experts, the positions are anything but clear. For the constitutionalist Pablo ManiliPro’s approach “is somewhat correct.” He pointed out that the functioning of Congress in extraordinary elections is by definition “restrictive” and that the integration of another constitutional body such as the AGN is not part of the internal functioning of the Chamber. In this sense, he understands that this is a competence that “goes beyond the powers authorized during the parliamentary recess”.
In the opposite direction, Andres Gil Dominguez He publicly claimed that the appointment of auditors does not mean the exercise of the legislative function. According to their interpretation, it is not a matter of dictating general rules or intervening in the process of enacting laws, but of an institutional power that is specific to each chamber and is linked to the involvement of a control body as provided for in the Constitution. From this perspective, the decision would have an internal, organic character and would not come about through the constraints of the extraordinary agenda.
An intermediate position introduces another key element: the scope of judicial review. Magalí MirandaProfessor of Constitutional and Political Law at the National University of Córdoba, recalled that the appointment of authorities to supervisory bodies has traditionally been viewed as a matter fundamentally “exempt from judicial review”. However, he warned that there are exceptions when a blatant violation of individual rights is proven. As a background, he cited the “Judges” case, in which the Supreme Court reviewed the formation of blocs in the Senate for the appointment of representatives in the Judicial Council, as representative plurality had been thwarted. Nevertheless, Miranda stressed that the AGN must complete its integration and that these designations “should emerge from a broad and in-depth debate, albeit without delays.”
Gustavo ArballoProfessor of Law at the National University of La Pampa, largely agreed with Gil Domínguez’s interpretation. He emphasized that there is no consolidated case law on this point and that the proposal is therefore “relatively new”. In his opinion, the constitutional limitation that applies to extraordinary elections should be understood as relating to legislative activity “and not to the exercise of the powers of each chamber”. In this context, he emphasized that the appointment of representatives in the AGN is implemented through internal decisions and not through laws.
The debate widens even further when the question of self-conscription is introduced. Pedro CaminosLawyer and professor of constitutional law at the University of Buenos Aires, points out that Congress retains its control over the executive branch even during the recess. From this perspective, he claimed that although the President sets an agenda when calling extraordinary sessions, “Parliament can include other issues if they are related to the control of government files.” In this system, the formation of the AGN – a constitutional control body – would be part of these powers.
Sebastian GuidiThe doctor of law and specialist in constitutional law was more skeptical. She does not consider the appointment of auditors to be a necessary prerequisite for the functioning of Parliament and warns of the risks of a broad interpretation of self-convocation. He recalled that if this logic were accepted, Congress could always circumvent the president’s agenda by coming up with its own agenda, something that has been rejected in the past by governments in power. As an example, he cited the opposition of Kirchnerism when parliament tried to rally in support Martin Redrado at the head of the Central Bank and assumed that La Libertad Avanza would likely take the same position if faced with an opposition Congress in a similar situation.
Since the designation had already been completed and the controversy was open, the conflict was raised in institutional terms. The judiciary will now have the final say on whether the move was a valid interpretation of parliamentary powers or an excess that breached extraordinary session rules.
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