Gildo Insfrán
Gildo Insfrán (born 19 January 1951) is an Argentine Justicialist Party (PJ) politician, who has been Governor of Formosa Province since 1995. Having been close to former President Carlos Menem, Insfrán later became close to President Néstor Kirchner, who defeated Menem in 2003 and was the leader of the Justicialist Party. Insfrán has been the target of accusations of corruption and embezzlement, and has been severely criticized for his long tenure. He arranged to have Formosa's provincial constitution revised to allow him to be reelected indefinitely, and has thus been described as having "stuck a knife into the provincial Constitution". In August 2012, journalist Jorge Lanata investigated the history of Insfrán's governorship and aired an exposé on his television program in which he depicted the province as a feudal fiefdom that is rife with corruption. His tenures as governor have been regarded favorably by inhabitants of Formosa. Early life and education Insfrán comes from family of Paraguayan immigrants and is the youngest among his siblings. His father, who had fought in the Chaco War, passed away when Gildo was young, and his brother Miguel took on the responsibility of managing the family's finances. Thanks to Miguel's support, Gildo was able to pursue his university education in the province of Corrientes, where he successfully completed his studies and earned a degree in veterinary science at the National University of the Northeast. where he successfully completed his studies and became a veterinarian. It was during his time in college that he first became involved in politics. Early career During his time at university in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Insfrán began his political activism in the Revolutionary Communist Party (PCR), a minority Maoist party. However, before completing his studies, he had already joined the recently legalized Justicialist Party (PJ). Prior to formally engaging in institutional political activities, he practiced as a veterinarian. His political career began in 1978, after sending a letter in February requesting employment from General Juan Carlos Colombo, the former governor of Formosa during the last military dictatorship. As a result, Gildo Insfrán assumed a position in the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources of the province on May 5, 1978, until December 10, 1983, when he resigned to run in the legislative elections with the return of democracy. In the provincial elections of 1983, he ran as a candidate for provincial deputy in the Formosa legislature on the Justicialista Party ticket, occupying the fifth position on the list. The Justicialista Party emerged victorious with 42.83% of the votes, and Insfrán was elected as a deputy. Due to the staggered system used in the election of provincial legislators, Insfrán would only serve half of a constitutional legislative term until the partial renewal in 1985. In those elections, Insfrán sought re-election and his list achieved a very narrow victory against the opposition Radical Civic Union, with 44.95% against 44.06%. Nonetheless, he was easily reelected to a full term until 1989. Governor In 1995, he formed his own party affiliated