Amid protests by opponents against censorship imposed by the Cartist majority last week, the Chamber of Deputies approved a request for information from the Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies (MITIC), headed by Minister Gustavo Villate, about the role of Juan Roberto “Jimmy” Villaverde in the alleged dirty campaign network. President Santiago Peña, who in 2023 introduced Villaverde as his social media manager, recently denied any link to him, calling him a mere “Cartist militant.”
The request, submitted by independent deputy Raúl Benítez, asks whether Villaverde has or had official credentials to access Executive Branch facilities, including the presidential residence Mburuvicha Róga. It also seeks details on any service contracts, consulting agreements, or payments made by the state, through MITIC or the binational entities Itaipú and Yacyretá, to Villaverde or the company “Comunik” since 2023.
Benítez stated that the dirty campaign is funded with public money. “The bootlickers, the grovelers, the hitmen of the government are paid with public money,” he declared. He stressed that it is unbelievable that MITIC tries to make it seem that pages attacking critics and promoting state programs, such as Che Roga Pora and Sumar, received no payment or benefit.
Separately, deputy Adrián “Billy” Vaesken, of the Authentic Radical Liberal Party (PLRA), harshly criticized Attorney General Emiliano Rolón for not opening an investigation into a formal complaint against Peña for suspected self-dealing, filed in October 2025. Vaesken said Rolón justified the inaction by citing a lack of experts and awaiting an opinion from the Comptroller General’s Office. “This man is incompetent. He is a true carriage,” Vaesken shot back, adding that impunity reigns in the country.