As part of a very busy day on Tuesday that included her inauguration as president of Mexico and lunch at the National Palace with world leaders and other dignitaries, President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo outlined 100 commitments for her term in office during a speech to some 400,000 boisterous supporters in Mexico City’s main square.
But before she made those pledges, dancers and musicians took to the stage in the Zócalo, where a festive mood prevailed, and the new president received a “baton of command” from female representatives of Mexico’s Indigenous and Afro-Mexican communities.
¡Gracias! pic.twitter.com/sQDBjs8wYu
— Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (@Claudiashein) October 2, 2024
Sheinbaum also received a smoke cleansing and words of praise, encouragement and advice from various Indigenous women.
“We invoke the divine strength of nature so that in the government of the constitutional president, problems are resolved through dialogue, the building of agreements, forgiveness and reconciliation with a humanist sense,” one of the women said.
Mexico’s Indigenous peoples gave Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) a similar welcome to office in the Zócalo on the day he was sworn in as president almost six years ago.
When she made it to the lectern late on Tuesday afternoon wearing her presidential sash, Sheinbaum further warmed up the already enthusiastic crowd by leading them into some of López Obrador’s favorite adages, as well as common chants from the recently-completed “AMLO years.”
“It is…” she said.
“An honor to be with Obrador!” chanted the droves of Sheinbaum supporters and loyal AMLOvers.
“For the good of all,” Sheinbaum began. “The poor come first,” continued the crowd.
“There can’t be a rich government … with a poor people!”
Sheinbaum’s commitments for her 6-year term
Like López Obrador, Sheinbaum was elected president on a ticket backed by the Morena party.
Like López Obrador, Sheinbaum will live in the National Palace during her presidency.
And like López Obrador, Sheinbaum outlined 100 commitments for her time in office on the day she was sworn in as president. Some of the new president’s commitments were made up of two, three, four or even more individual pledges.
It is worth noting that López Obrador claimed he fulfilled 98 of the commitments he made on Dec. 1, 2018, conceding that the resolution of the case the 43 Ayotzinapa students abducted in Guerrero in 2014 and the proposed decentralization of the federal government remained outstanding.
However, some newspapers, including El Sol de México and Sin Embargo, reported that the number of commitments AMLO actually fulfilled was significantly lower than he claimed.
A selection of the commitments Sheinbaum made on Tuesday for her six-year term appears below. Each commitment has been sorted into one of 13 categories.
Time will tell how good Mexico’s first woman president is at keeping her word.
Overarching commitments
- “We will never subjugate ourselves to economic, political or foreign interests. We will always work for the supreme interest of the people and the nation.”
- “We will be a government that is sensitive and close to the people. … I will continue visiting all the states of the republic on the weekends: Friday, Saturday and Sunday.”
- “We will guarantee all freedoms — those of speech, the press, assembly and protest.”
- “[My cabinet ministers and I] will lead an honest, honorable government without cronyism, nepotism, corruption or impunity.”
Commitments regarding justice
- “We will continue working with the families to reach the truth and justice [in the Ayotzinapa case] and to find all the missing young men.”
- Justice plans for all [Indigenous] peoples will continue.”
Commitments regarding political power
- “In 2027 I will subject myself to a revocation of mandate [recall election], as the constitution establishes.”
- “We will send a constitutional reform initiative [to Congress] to recover the democratic principle of ‘no reelection’ so that from 2030 no [person holding a] position of popular election can be reelected … not mayors, senators or deputies.”
Economic commitments
- “The neoliberal model that did so much damage to Mexico won’t return. The moral economy and [the doctrine of] Mexican Humanism will be maintained.”
- “We’re going to maintain republican austerity and financial and fiscal discipline. A government without luxuries and without privileges will continue.”
- “We will respect the autonomy of the Bank of Mexico and maintain a reasonable balance between [levels of] debt and gross domestic product.”
- “The price of gasoline, diesel, electricity and household gas will not increase above the inflation rate.”
- “Economic incentives will be maintained in the [southern and northern] border areas.”
- “[We will] welcome private investment and the relocation of companies.”
Welfare and cultural commitments
- “We will guarantee [the continuation of] all of President López Obrador’s welfare programs.”
- “We will guarantee the conditions so that Mexico’s artists can carry out their activities and receive fair remuneration.”
Education commitments
- “The New Mexican School education model will continue and [so will the distribution of] free textbooks.”
- “We will make Mexico a science and innovation power. To do that, we will support [the teaching of] basic and natural sciences, and humanities.”
Energy commitments
- “We will commence the production of lithium with our own technology.”
- “The objective continues to be to strengthen Pemex and the Federal Electricity Commission [CFE] as public, strategic companies.”
- “We’re going to promote renewable energy. The objective is that in 2030 [renewable energy] will have 45% participation [in the energy market].”
- The state – the CFE – will produce at least 54% of [electricity] and 46% [will come from] private generation.”
- “We will strengthen the Sonora [energy] Plan, increasing the generation of solar energy and the productive chain for lithium, copper, semiconductors and electric vehicles.”
Health care commitments
- “From birth, all Mexicans must have access to vaccines, preventative care [and] medical care.”
- “The program for the modernization of hospital infrastructure and equipment will continue.”
- “We will strengthen … access to health care for women throughout their whole lives, particularly … [access to] sexual and reproductive health care.”
Housing commitments
- We will build at least one million homes during the six-year period of government.”
- “We’re going to provide 450,000 low-cost loans for home improvement.”
Labor commitments
- “[Annual] increases to the minimum wage will continue.”
- “We’re going to progressively increase the minimum salaries of teachers, doctors, nurses, soldiers, members of the National Guard and marines so that none of them earns less than the average salary of [workers with] IMSS [social security benefits].”
- “During the six-year term of government, we will gradually move toward the 40-hour [five day working] week.”
Infrastructure commitments
- “We will seek coordination with the United States for the expansion of cross-border bridges.”
- “We’re going to take the Maya Train [railroad] to the port of Progreso in Yucatán, and we’re going to make the Maya Train a freight [railroad].”
- The Interoceanic Train will go to the [southern] border and we’re going to help Guatemala so that it can continue in Guatemala.”
- “We’re going to develop new train lines to the north.”
- “We’re going to strengthen Mexicana de Aviación, the airline of the people of Mexico.”
- “We will expand the airports in Tamuín, in San Luis Potosí; in Tepic; in Lázaro Cárdenas; in Puerto Escondido, and [complete] the remodeling of the Benito Juárez International Airport in Mexico City.”
Water commitments
- “Access to water will be a priority for our government. … Water belongs to the nation.”
- “The main strategic projects to guarantee the recycling of water and human access to water … will be in Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Colima, Guerrero, Durango, Coahuila, Guanajuato, Zacatecas, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Campeche and … the metropolitan area of the Valley of Mexico. We’re going to guarantee access to water in the Valley of Mexico and Hidalgo.”
- “We’re going to clean up the three most contaminated rivers in the country: the Lerma Santiago River, the Tula River and the Atoyac River.
Security commitments
- “We will guarantee the reduction of high-impact crimes [such as murder].”
- “The irresponsible war against narcos of [former president Felipe] Calderón won’t return.
- “We’re strengthening the [security] strategy, which consists of four core tenets: attention to the causes [of crime]; strengthening of the National Guard; intelligence and investigation; and coordination … with the states, with the municipalities.”
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies ([email protected])
