They’ve been doling out cash to Michoacán but the trains remain idle

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January 25, 2019

Teachers camp on the railroad tracks in Michoacán.

Authorities in Michoacán have been unable to resolve a pay dispute with teachers despite receiving more than 1.6 billion pesos from the federal government last month to cover unpaid salaries.

Teachers affiliated with the CNTE and SNTE unions continue to block railroad tracks in the state, demanding payment of money they say they are owed by the state government along with other concessions.

The blockades, which started at the beginning of last week, have halted more than 140 trains, preventing the transport of a range of goods including 300,000 barrels of gasoline bound for Jalisco, where fuel shortages persist.

Héctor García, head of the administration and finance division of the Secretariat of Public Education (SEP), said that 1.65 billion pesos (US $87 million) was allocated to education authorities in Michoacán to pay salaries, bonuses and other benefits to teachers.

“[Michoacán] is the state that has received the most money from President Andrés Manuel López Obrador,” he said.

“[The money] helped the teachers’ movement a little bit and we resolved [the problem to some extent] but not in the way we wanted, it’s a problem that’s been going on for 30 years,” García added.

Now, authorities in Michoacán are asking for an additional 1.2 billion pesos (US $63.4 million) and for the federal government to assume responsibility for the payment of teachers’ salaries, he said.

García explained that due to the “seriousness of the problem,” the government could provide that amount of funding but the SNTE union has indicated that even if the money is forthcoming, it intends to maintain the blockades.

“There is an economic offer on the part of the federal government for more than 1 billion pesos to confront the education problem in our state but we won’t accept it because our demands are as much economic as administrative and political and those [demands] aren’t included in the offer,” the union said.

García said that federal authorities have held meetings with Michoacán Governor Silvano Aureoles at which it has been suggested that an “administrative reengineering” is needed to solve the pay dispute.

If the teachers’ railroad blockades continue, the economic losses, already estimated to be in the hundreds of millions if not billions of pesos, will continue to mount.

Among the industries that will be hardest hit is petroleum.

Mexico’s refineries transport a lot of fuel oil to Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán, by rail for export to Asia.

But if they can’t get the product to the port city, it will accumulate in storage tanks at the refineries which, according to a former Pemex official, could force them to stop producing gasoline.

“If the tanks fill up, the refineries would have to go into a technical stoppage,” he said, a situation that would exacerbate fuel shortages, especially in the Bajío region.

Source: Reforma (sp)

Pipeline blast death toll 109; residents report illegal taps

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César Hernández

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January 25, 2019

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Police locate more pipeline taps in Hidalgo.

The number of deaths caused by the explosion and fire last week at the Tlahuelilpan, Hidalgo, pipeline tap has risen to 109.

Health Secretary Jorge Alcocer Varela told this morning’s federal government press conference that the two most recent deaths occurred overnight.

He said 23 burn victims remain in hospitals in Mexico City, the states of México and Hidalgo, and in Galveston, Texas.

Meanwhile, more “high-risk” illegal pipeline taps have been identified in the Tlahuelilpan area after local residents came forward to report them to authorities.

Federal Police confirmed that 11 taps were located in the municipality of Tlahuelilpan and three more were found in Tetepango.

A Federal Police officer told the same press conference that citizens who reported the location of the pipeline taps did so because they were aware of the risk they pose to their communities.

He said no leaks were found and no drop was detected in the internal pressure of the pipelines, which continued to operate normally.

After the January 18 explosion, President López Obrador called on citizens to support the fight against petroleum theft by reporting pipeline taps.

Source: Milenio (sp), Reforma (sp)

Youth storms stage, makes a mockery of López Obrador’s ‘security’

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MND Staff

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January 25, 2019

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The young man who breached AMLO's security stands with the president on the stage.

A young man made a mockery of President López Obrador’s security arrangements yesterday, storming the stage at an event in Puebla and approaching the president unimpeded.

As López Obrador addressed the crowd gathered in the pueblo mágico of Huauchinango to tout the benefits of the federal government’s social development programs, 19-year-old Eduardo Astudillo González looked on while hatching a plan to get up close and personal with the political veteran.

Separating him from the stage was a meter-high metal barrier but there was no heavy-handed security entourage to protect the president, who once remarked “the people will protect me, he who fights for justice has nothing to fear.”

Instead, just five young men and women, members of López Obrador’s so-called siervos de la nación (servants of the nation) who have been enlisted to help with the distribution of aid, stood guard along with a few members of the informal security detail known as the presidential ayudantía (literally assistants or helpers).

But they were no match for Astudillo.

In a matter of seconds, he jumped over the barrier, pushed past the siervos, brushed aside the ayudantía, scurried up the steps to the stage and then stopped, turning to the crowd and flashing a triumphant grin.

The young man, dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt, had achieved no mean feat: while getting past “security” presented few challenges, he also managed to divert attention from AMLO, who had been railing against fuel theft, a common crime in Huauchinango.

For a moment, the president fell silent but then, with no lines of defense left to stop the intruder, he said, “Let’s see, come.”

Astudillo walked across the stage, shook López Obrador’s hand, whispered something in his ear and handed him a couple of crumpled pieces of paper – no harm done.

Having completed his audacious mission, Astudillo appeared intent on leaving the stage but the president had other ideas.

“But wait a second, no? Let’s see, wait, isn’t there a chair here [for the young man]?” López Obrador said after which the crowd broke into a chant of presidente, presidente!

And so Astudillo took a place on stage amid local politicians and some of the first beneficiaries of the government’s social programs and remained seated until the end of the proceedings.

López Obrador later said that Astudillo had asked him for help to join the federal government’s apprenticeship program known as “Youths Building the Future.”

“Here in Puebla, all of the young people of Huauchinango, of this region, of the whole state, are going to have work,” he remarked.

López Obrador’s lax security arrangements have been criticized by some who argue that the importance of the position of president demands that he take his personal safety more seriously.

But the 65-year-old leftist, who has made his “common man” persona a central part of his political identity, appears unlikely to change tack any time soon although this week he made one concession: he agreed to travel in a Chevrolet Suburban SUV rather than his Volkswagen Jetta.

“It’s sturdier,” he said.

Source: Milenio (sp), Tiempo (sp)

Nine-story building in Mexico City sinks 70 centimeters

By

Madison Koen

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January 24, 2019

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The building that dropped 70 centimeters.

Residents of the Granjas México neighborhood in Mexico City were woken up by a loud bang in the twilight hours of Thursday morning.

But it was just another building sinking in the old lakebed on which the city sits.

Authorities determined that a nine-story building in the Iztacalco borough sank 70 centimeters on its southern side, damaging windows and the sidewalks surrounding the building.

Public safety personnel and firefighters evacuated 40 workers from the building and sealed off the area while Civil Protection personnel inspected the structure for damage. Another inspection was expected to be carried out later in the day.

Five neighboring houses and a factory were also evacuated as a safety measure. The building was undergoing a renovation at the time of its sinking and was being advertised for rent as office space.

The borough’s mayor told reporters that he planned to verify all documents and permits pertaining to the structure to determine the legality of the work being done at the time of the incident.

Armando Quintero added that he was in touch with the building’s owners and that they were cooperating to determine the costs incurred by neighbors in having to evacuate their homes.

Sinking buildings are not uncommon in the capital as some areas are slowly but steadily dropping.

Source: Reporteros Hoy (sp), La Silla Rota (sp), Milenio (sp)

Manatee deaths encouraged student to develop submarine robot

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MND Staff

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January 24, 2019

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The deaths of around 50 manatees in Tabasco last year due to toxic algae served as the catalyst for a Puebla student to develop a submarine robot capable of measuring water contamination levels and sending the data it collects in real time.

Aldo Rodríguez, a computer science student at the Benemérita Autonomous University of Puebla, was shocked when he heard about the manatees that perished in the Bitzales region of the Gulf coast state in July and August 2018.

He decided to put his knowledge into practice by developing a robot that could help to prevent future deaths of manatees and other marine species.

Rodríguez told the National Council for Science and Technology (Conacyt) that his submarine robot prototype has sensors that measure water quality.

The data it collects is sent to a receiving device which then uploads the information to the internet, he explained, adding that sensors also relay information about the robot’s location and the condition of its battery.

Rodríguez said that having information about the quality of water in lakes, rivers and streams could not only help to protect marine life but also prevent illnesses caused by the consumption of contaminated water.

He explained that pH levels of between 6.0 and 7.2 are best for most aquatic creatures and that outside that range most species will die.

Rodríguez said that his invention, which has already won the top prize at two science and technology fairs, could also be used at fish farms to ensure that water quality is maintained.

His submarine robot weighs three kilograms, is capable of reaching depths up to five meters and costs around 20,000 pesos (US $1,050) to make.

Source: Conacyt Prensa (sp)

Travel agencies cancel boycott of Chichén Itzá over admission price hike

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Madison Koen

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January 24, 2019

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Yucatán will upgrade facilities at the attraction.

The Mexican Travel Agency Association (AMAV) in Quintana Roo has canceled a boycott of the Yucatán tourist attraction Chichén Itzá after that state’s governor offered incentives and promised upgrades and improvements.

In December, the state government doubled the entrance fee to the archaeological site (from 242 to 480 pesos) effective February 1, which prompted a boycott by 70 travel agencies representing approximately 70% of traffic to the site.

AMAV president Sergio González Rubiera told reporters that the archaeological site had not yet seen a drastic decrease in tourism because of the boycott. He explained that many tourist packages that include visits to Chichén Itzá along with the rest of the “Mayan World” had already been sold based on the previous admission charge.

He also commented that informal ticket re-sellers took advantage of the boycott, worsening the situation for travel agencies.

González said the AMAV and the state government negotiated an end to the boycott in exchange for incentives for the agencies and a series of measures to improve Chichén Itzá’s facilities in order to justify the elevated entrance fee.

Source: Reportur (sp)

Sale of three Pemex hydrogen plants under investigation

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MND Staff

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January 24, 2019

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A division of Pemex is under investigation by the federal government for corruption over the sale of three hydrogen plants.

Between September 2017 and July 2018, Pemex Industrial Transformation (TRI) sold the hydrogen plants at the refineries in Tula, Hidalgo; Cadereyta, Nuevo León; and Ciudad Madero, Tamaulipas, to the companies Air Liquide México, Gazsur and Linde Gas North America.

Linde Gas paid 35 million euros (US $39.5 million) for the Ciudad Madero plant, according to the company’s financial report for the first quarter of 2018. The prices the other two companies paid have not been revealed.

TRI also directly awarded contracts to the companies for the supply of hydrogen.

Under the terms of the contracts, which are currently under investigation by the Secretariat of Energy (Sener), Pemex buys US $2.9 million worth of hydrogen from the three companies each month.

Just under US $1.5 million goes to Air Liquide México, US $774,000 goes to Linde Gas North America and US $644,000 is paid to Gazsur.

However, the real costs are undoubtedly much higher because under the terms of the contracts, Pemex has to supply the companies with the inputs they need to produce the hydrogen, including natural gas, water, energy and nitrogen.

According to Pemex documents, the purpose of entering into the agreements with the private companies was to guarantee the reliable supply of hydrogen at a low cost and to reduce the number of “unscheduled stoppages” at the refineries.

However, all three refineries have been affected by stoppages since the contracts were signed.

During a visit to the Tula refinery last month, federal Energy Secretary Rocío Nahle said that workers told her that former Pemex officials “sold the plant before they left and now we have to pay the new owners almost US $1 million a month so that they give us hydrogen.”

Former Pemex CEO Carlos Treviño said the sale of the plants was justified because it would reduce costs.

Federal authorities are also investigating another former Pemex CEO, Emilio Lozoya, for bribes he allegedly received from the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht in exchange for the awarding of a contract for work at the Tula refinery.

In addition, past and current officials at the state oil company are under the microscope for possible links to fuel theft.

Source: El Universal (sp), Forbes México (sp)

Morena party leader finds PRI lawmakers willing to work for the country

By

MND Staff

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January 24, 2019

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Polevnsky says PRI proving easier to work with.

The once omnipotent political party that was unceremoniously tossed out of power at last year’s election has shown greater willingness to work with the government for the good of the country than the conservative National Action Party, according to the national leader of the ruling Morena party.

Yeidckol Polevnsky told reporters in the lower house of Congress yesterday that the government will build alliances with the party that “wants to build for this country.”

Since the new government took office, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which governed Mexico between 2012 and 2018 and has long been synonymous with corruption, has fit that bill, Polevnsky contended.

“I’ve seen a lot of willingness, a lot of interest to work for the people, I’ve found that among the priístas [PRI lawmakers], there is intent to work for the good of the country and the states,” she said.

“It’s about building [alliances] with everyone but if you have some [political parties] that are completely negative, fighting amongst themselves, contradicting us, then you build with [the party] that’s . . . concerned about the country and wants things to be solved,” Polevnsky said.

“PRIMOR [PRI and Morena] sounds a lot better than PRIAN [PRI and PAN],” she quipped.

Morena and the National Action Party (PAN) clashed last year over the result of the election for governor in Puebla.

The latter’s candidate, Martha Erika Alonso, was declared the winner but the former challenged the result, alleging fraud.

Alonso was sworn in as governor on December 14 but 10 days later she was killed in a helicopter accident alongside her husband and former governor of Puebla, Rafael Moreno Valle.

A new election for governor will be held but in the meantime, PRI politician Guillermo Pacheco Pulido will serve as interim governor after being appointed to the role Monday following a vote in the state Congress.

“I’m sure that the acting governor is going to play a good role and avoid things being manipulated. It was unacceptable, it wasn’t feasible that it was someone from the PAN, I mean, we already had a fraud,” Polevnsky said.

Source: El Universal (sp), Milenio (sp)

Purchase of tanker trucks completed; vehicles to begin arriving next week

By

César Hernández

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January 24, 2019

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The fleet of tanker trucks has grown by 671 to address fuel shortages.

The federal government has completed the purchase of 671 tanker trucks intended to bolster fuel distribution capacity.

Given the urgency to address fuel shortages, the usual bidding process was bypassed in the US $92-million purchase, said Raquel Buenrostro Sánchez, senior officer at the Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP).

The purchase, made through tanker truck manufacturers’ associations in Mexico and the United States, will see the first 50 trucks arrive in on February 1. The delivery of the new trucks will continue progressively until March 29.

The trucks will come in four different sizes, with capacity from 30,000 to 60,000 liters. They will be operated by the army but officials from Pemex participated in their selection, defining technical requirements and evaluating offers.

President López Obrador announced the purchase of the vehicles last week, saying they were intended to “take some pressure off” the pipelines used in the distribution of fuel.

Many pipelines were shut down earlier this month in the government’s strategy to combat pipeline taps and fuel theft. Tanker trucks were put into service to deliver fuel but they have been unable to keep up with demand, which resulted in weeks-long fuel shortages in several states.

Source: El Financiero (sp)

Baja legislator’s new Mercedes Benz causes a stir

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César Hernández

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January 24, 2019

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A Baja California Sur lawmaker saw no harm in posting photos of her new car, a Mercedes-Benz CLA Coupe with a price tag of over half a million pesos (US $26,300), on social media.

But the reaction, mostly critical, soon followed.

While the president of Mexico drives around the country’s capital in a simple Volkswagen Jetta, Deputy Perla Flores Leyva of La Paz is driving a luxury vehicle, ostensibly a gift from her husband, whom she described as a “successful entrepreneur.”

In the photo, the Social Encounter Party politician is at a dealership where her husband is handing over the keys to her new ride.

A few social media users commented that Flores “can do as she pleases with her money.”

But another noted that the government’s stance on austerity was incongruous with the purchase. “. . . That’s what bothers us, the people. Add to that the fact that many streets are pocked with potholes, there are no streetlights, etc. Deputies say they are representing us, what we voted for, and they fail us . . .”

The car’s make gave the incident more notoriety than its price, said the deputy, “and it is less than the cost of other cars bought by other deputies.”

Flores saw no contradiction between her new car and the government’s austerity policies, because state deputies lowered their salaries by 30% after they took office and eliminated perks such as travel allowances and insurance.

“This is not the first time that [my husband] has given me a car. What’s different now is that I am in politics, and I understand,” said Flores.

Source: El Universal (sp)