Last Wednesday, April 8, within the framework of Commission No. 2 of the Tierra del Fuego Legislature, Gustavo Melella 's administration suffered a definitive moral collapse. It was not just another consultative meeting; it was the stage where the president of the Provincial Port Authority (DPP), Roberto Murcia , was exposed as the executor of a maneuver to hand over Tierra del Fuego's most strategic asset, after admitting that he lied about not having met with the State Attorney before and after the national government's intervention.

That day, Commission No. 2 - Economy, Budget and Finance - chaired by Matias Lapadula , held a public and open meeting in the political blocs building in the city of Ushuaia (San Martín 1431); between 2 and 4 pm; and a confidential and closed meeting, from 4 to 6 pm.

During the public session , in front of legislators Matías Lapadula, Federico Sciurano, Pablo Villegas, Raúl Von Der Thusen, Laura Colazo, Natalia Gracianía, Juan Carlos Pino, Tomás Garcia, and Victoria Vuoto , as well as port workers and the press, Roberto Murcia explained that he had not involved the State Prosecutor because, since 1992, the port "has been an autonomous entity." He stated that he had therefore considered it unnecessary, since the State Prosecutor lacked jurisdiction and because he communicated with the Government's Legal and Technical Secretariat . Therefore, he interpreted that this department was in contact with the State Prosecutor. The most he managed to say was, "I may have been wrong not to consult the State Prosecutor."

The responses of the president of the port authority, regarding the excessive scope of the autonomy with which he defended his actions, generated more than one reproach from the legislators; considering that Murcia was admitting ignorance of the Constitution of Tierra del Fuego and its laws, or that he was lying knowing that he violated them with full awareness of his actions.

Two hours later, during the closed-door meeting of the Commission, Roberto Murcia was exposed to a truth that he himself had hidden for 90 days, behind evasions and lies.

According to three legislators who spoke to Agenda Malvinas , the State Prosecutor , Virgilio Martínez de Sucre , “ contradicted Murcia to his face” and “put him in a very uncomfortable situation”; when he stated that on December 16 - the same day as the national notification informing of his decision to intervene in the port - he had met with Murcia and advised filing an “urgent injunction”.

Martínez de Sucre was not alone . He went to the meeting accompanied by five professionals from the Prosecutor's Office, two of whom had been present with the Prosecutor on December 16 when the official meeting with Murcia took place.

The legislators also learned that hours after the National Ports and Navigation Agency's intervention on January 21, the State Prosecutor's Office contacted Murcia again, requesting precise details of the documentation submitted by the intervention team to take control of the port and of the actions they carried out. Murcia's response was late and incomplete.

“Virgilio killed him,” one legislator declared. Another, in the same tone, used the following expression: “The State Prosecutor framed him. Murcia was devastated.” A female legislator reported: “Murcia didn’t say a single word. He was in very bad shape. For a moment he seemed to have a breakdown. Some of us thought that after that he was going to resign.”

It is clear that now, officially, the legislature took note of the State Prosecutor himself; that the Executive Branch did consult him and that it not only ignored the advice of the province's highest oversight body, but also concealed that information, giving free rein to a federal intervention carried out - according to Murcia - at 23:59 on January 20.

Today, Sunday, April 26th, the 36th anniversary of the Provincialization of Tierra del Fuego, 18 days after that revealing meeting, what is most alarming is not only what has been revealed about what Murcia concealed, but the absolute silence of the legislators . After listening to, recording, and witnessing firsthand how the State Prosecutor left Murcia speechless by exposing his lies, no bloc, no legislator has spoken out frankly and clearly, nor have they promoted a strong resolution, nor have they demanded the official's resignation .

The intervention on January 21st was not a surprise; it was a prearranged handover. The Melella administration implemented an administrative "free zone": it emptied the accounts, ignored the State Prosecutor, hired private firms to feign a defense, and now allows control of the port and its revenue to rest in the hands of the national government.

If Murcia has not yet resigned after being caught lying to the members of the parliamentary committee, by the highest control authority in the province, it is because its continued presence is necessary to complete the handover.

Let's be clear: the port of Ushuaia wasn't stolen; it was handed over turnkey. And the silence of a majority in the Legislature, 19 days after learning the truth, is beginning to sound like acquiescence.