The scandal gives no respite to former Chief of Staff Manuel Adorni. This Wednesday, the now former official submitted his resignation from his position on the board of YPF, according to sources at the state-owned oil company. The resignation comes just days after he left the Chief of Staff position, which he held until last Saturday, when he announced his departure via a public letter on his social media.
YPF sources explained that the resignation will take effect once the rest of the board approves it at the next meeting. Adorni had been appointed to that post as part of the government’s political quota in the state-owned company, but his tenure became unsustainable after the recent scandals in which he was the protagonist.
Adorni’s departure from the YPF board comes amid a judicial investigation for alleged illicit enrichment, adding to the strong criticism over the trip he made to New York with his wife on the presidential plane, a luxury that sparked public outrage. The former official also faces complaints over alleged lavish expenses and irregular contracts, although he dismisses them as «media operations.»
The reaction from the Casa Rosada was swift. The Secretary General of the Presidency, Karina Milei, published a tweet thanking Adorni for his «tireless work» and described him as «an upright, valuable, and very beloved person.» «We know about the difficult – and undeserved – moment you and your family have been going through for months, and we respect your decision,» wrote the president’s sister.
In his resignation letter, Adorni defended himself against the accusations and claimed to be «a simple citizen who one day wanted to collaborate with a project that is putting Argentina at the top of the world.» However, the former official could not avoid mentioning the «endless media attacks» that, according to him, led him to make the decision to step away from the government. «They have forced me to ask you to accompany me this time, to close this cycle in order to protect myself and my family,» he stated.
Adorni also listed a series of versions he described as «false» that, he said, circulated about him. Among them he mentioned «trips that never existed, astronomical and lavish expenses, nonexistent and false contracts of my wife with the State or with public companies, mansions and luxury cars, ‘crypto farms’ operated in complicity with the Presidential Guard, nepotism, personal expenses paid with public funds, the existence of a supposed pendrive ‘full of dollars’ (yes, Mr. President, a pendrive ‘full of dollars’), companies in Uruguay, cosmetic surgeries costing thousands of dollars, and dozens more falsehoods.»
Adorni’s departure from the YPF board marks a new chapter in the crisis surrounding President Javier Milei’s inner circle. Meanwhile, the former official withdraws from the public scene, at least for now, leaving behind a trail of complaints and suspicions that the government tries to downplay, but that the courts are already investigating.
Para mí esto huele a que se va el último manto de corrupción kirchnerista de YPF. Yo creo que ahora hay que investigar a todos los adictos al poder que se banquearon con nuestros impuestos. Vamos Milei a limpiar el curro de una vez. Los zurdos llorando bien merecido lo tienen.
Para mí este Adorni es un rata, se piensa que renunciando borra todo lo que choreó en YPF. Un viaje en avión presidencial con la patrona mientras el pueblo se funde. Esto huele a impunidad gorila, me da asco.