Mexico City’s new government is planning to repopulate the capital’s historic center by building as many as 7,000 new social housing units.
Dunia Ludlow, who will head up the city government’s Historic Center Authority (ACH), told the newspaper El Universal that in its first year in office the government will conduct an investigation to determine the ownership of land and vacant properties in the area.
Construction of the new dwellings could follow on 100 lots, she said, explaining that the ACH has discussed the plan with the city government’s Institute of Housing (Invi).
Ludlow explained that in 1950, around 400,000 people lived in Mexico City’s downtown but the population is now just under half that number at 198,000.
The biggest exodus was from the area known as Perimeter A, which surrounds the zócalo, Mexico City’s large central square.
Relocation of the National Autonomous University (UNAM) around the middle of the last century and the devastating 1985 earthquake both played a role in the depopulation of the city center.
In a less central zone of the downtown known as Perimeter B, Ludlow said, deteriorating infrastructure caused the population to decrease which in turn led to an increase in crime and insecurity.
She said the new administration is inheriting a historic center with problems such as high levels of informal commerce and rising insecurity. But she expressed confidence that things would change for the better because soon-to-be president López Obrador plans to live in the National Palace, located opposite the zócalo.
“. . . Local public security problems will become national security problems,” Ludlow said.
Ludlow also said the government could collaborate with the owners of largely vacant buildings in order to rent as many as 3,000 living spaces to low-income residents.
She explained that there are many buildings where businesses occupy the ground floor but the higher floors are completely empty or used only as storage space.
Ludlow added that in Perimeter B, there is also a lot of interest from the private sector to invest in the renovation of empty buildings.
She added that the new administration, which will be led by Morena party mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, will carry out repair work to improve the city center’s public plazas, sidewalks, and streets.
Mexico City’s historic center is home to many of the capital’s most famous tourist attractions including the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts), the Metropolitan Cathedral and the Templo Mayor archaeological site.
Spending irregularities in Veracruz during the administration of former governor Javier Duarte were “atrocious,” according to Mexico’s chief auditor, but just as bad is that no one has really paid the price.
Speaking at a government forum yesterday, the head of the Federal Auditor’s Office (ASF), David Colmenares, contended that the punishment imposed on the ex-governor was inadequate.
He was also critical of the process for selecting state auditors, claiming that criminal charges never follow state audits.
Duarte, who was in office between 2010 and 2016, was sentenced in September to nine years in prison for money laundering and criminal association but will be eligible to seek parole in just over three years.
He is estimated to have embezzled billions of pesos during his term but a federal judge imposed a fine of just 58,890 pesos (US $2,875), although he also ordered the seizure of 41 properties.
“Veracruz, evidently, was an atrocious case but the astonishing thing is that the penalties really didn’t materialize in the way we wanted,” Colmenares said.
The chief auditor argued that the work of the ASF is useless if those responsible for embezzlement and other spending irregularities are not held accountable.
Nevertheless, Colmenares said that in collaboration with the federal Attorney General’s office (PGR), auditors would continue to investigate Veracruz’s public accounts and anticipated that new criminal charges could follow in the coming months.
“We’ve already established a working group with the PGR to start looking at the matters that are still outstanding . . . we’re not going to give up. We really have no fear, the level of the people we’re looking at doesn’t matter, we’ll continue with the criminal complaints,” he said.
The ASF chief was also critical of auditors’ offices at the state level, charging that their officials never report irregularities that result in state government personnel being charged with embezzlement.
“State auditors do their work but never, never have they produced a result that brought a criminal complaint . . .” Colmenares said.
That, he said, is because auditors are appointed by the government of the day in the state in which they operate.
“. . . The affiliation is very clear and that has happened with [political parties] of all stripes,” Colmenares said.
“I haven’t seen a single case in which a state auditor’s office makes a strong case against a state government,” he added, pointing out that municipal governments are not afforded the same protection.
Emilio Barriga Delgado, a federal expenditure auditor who appeared alongside Colmenares yesterday, urged federal and state lawmakers to ensure that auditors’ offices – which in theory are independent of government – are able to conduct their work without political interference.
“. . . If we don’t have autonomy . . . what’s the point of being independent. . .” he asked.
There were two cases of races against trains yesterday in Nuevo León, one of which ended in the death of a driver.
In the first instance, Juan Cruz Pérez, 68, made an attempt to cross an intersection before a freight train in San Nicolás de los Garza. But although his semi-trailer was carrying no cargo, he didn’t quite make it.
The train struck the vehicle and left Cruz trapped inside. Emergency personnel freed the driver and transferred him to a nearby hospital where his condition was reported to be poor.
Later in the day, a man driving a pickup truck in an industrial neighborhood of Santa Catarina was not so lucky when he made a dash across a level crossing.
His vehicle was struck on the driver’s side by a three-engine freight train and pushed along the tracks for about 300 meters.
Medical assistance by first responders was not required: the driver was dead by the time they arrived.
A battle is brewing between the incoming federal government and state governors over super-delegates, the powerful federal officials who will be responsible for coordinating and implementing government programs and plans at the state level.
The Senate, where a coalition led by president-elect López Obrador’s Morena party has a majority, this week approved amendments to the Organic Law of Federal Public Administration, which formally established the role of the so-called super-delegates.
But the move triggered a backlash from opposition lawmakers and governors, who argue that it is intended to subordinate state governments to federal authority.
Senators from the opposition National Action Party (PAN) and Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) said they would pursue legal action in the Supreme Court against the legislative reform, arguing that the super-delegate system is unconstitutional, an attack on federalism and seeks to turn governors into nothing more than figureheads.
“We don’t want a centralized government and a retrograde presidential system,” said PAN Senator Mauricio Kuri.
Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) Senator and former interior secretary Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong also added his voice to the criticism, insinuating that the incoming government’s motivation was political rather than practical.
“The super-delegate idea gives the impression of really being a factory for pre-candidates,” he said.
However, López Obrador and his team argue that the super-delegate system will simplify the relationship between the federal government and the states because it will significantly reduce the number of people charged with conducting it.
There are currently 2,300 delegations, sub-delegations and offices of various federal departments that function as a link between federal and state authorities.
But in a letter directed to López Obrador, 12 PAN governors argued that their role would be reduced to one of “mere guests” under a super-delegate system, particularly with regard to public security.
Chihuahua Governor Javier Corral said he wouldn’t accept the imposition of the new system nor would he allow state security forces to be subordinated to the national guard that López Obrador has proposed creating.
Governors are responsible for public security in their states, he said, asserting that the soon-to-be president can expect staunch opposition if he changes that.
“We’re not going to let them walk all over us in this way,” Corral said.
Querétaro Governor Francisco Domínguez also played hardball, saying the super-delegate assigned to the state he leads will not be invited to form part of the government’s security team.
Amid the criticism came a warning from a Morena party senator that the Senate could strip powers from states that don’t respect the new government’s plans and policy agenda. But that only served to further fan the flames of discontent.
“No governor of any state will be able to oppose the constitutional mandate,” Félix Salgado Macedonio said.
“. . . It’s necessary to remind the [state] leaders that here, in the Senate, is where the viability of laws is discussed and analyzed and that we are the guarantors of compliance with them. Any governor who doesn’t agree to the constitutional guidelines could lose their powers,” he added.
Salgado contended that governors’ opposition to the super-delegate plan is based on the fact that their practice of putting friends and relatives into state-based federal agencies will end.
Miguel Ángel Mancera, PRD leader in the Senate and former Mexico City mayor, urged Salgado not to fall into “the temptation to abuse power,” adding that “these types of threats,” especially as a new administration prepares to take office, are not helpful.
PAN lawmakers said bluntly that “threats” of the kind made by Salgado are “unacceptable.”
Seeking to placate the López Obrador government’s political opponents, future interior secretary Olga Sánchez Cordero pledged that the rule of law would be respected and that state powers would not be undermined.
“I believe that if someone is going to be respectful of the rule of law, of sovereignty and legality, it’s going to be López Obrador. In no way is he going to compromise autonomy, the sovereignty of the states, municipalities or public powers – in no way – and I say that to you categorically,” she said.
“I would like to speak to the governors to explain to them that . . . the national guard is not going to be subordinated to the delegates, they are not going to manage it, they’ll be there [in the states] for social programs,” Sánchez added.
After casting a vote in today’s public consultation on the Maya train, López Obrador said he would speak to the governors about the super-delegate system but warned that he would not be pressured into caving in to their demands.
“There is going to be dialogue [with the governors] but I’m not going to be anyone’s hostage. I’m not going to allow myself to be blackmailed by anyone. I only have one master and one mandate, the [master is the] people and the mandate is to end corruption.”
He was the world’s heaviest man for a while but today, 34-year-old Aguascalientes native Juan Pedro Franco falls well short of the unenviable title.
Two years ago, Franco left his home state weighing 595 kilograms to travel to Guadalajara, Jalisco, to undergo surgery at a specialized clinic.
After two operations – a sleeve gastrectomy and a gastric bypass – he shed about half his body weight to reach 304 kilograms. And thanks to a third surgical procedure he could lose another 140 kilos.
For the first time in years, Franco was able to get out of bed, walk and wash and dress himself.
Yesterday, a medical team led by bariatric surgeon José Antonio Castañeda placed a gastric band in the top portion of the man’s stomach, meaning that his daily food intake will be limited to what can fit in just two shot glasses, or a maximum of about 80 grams.
In the future, the band will likely be adjusted to restrict even further the amount of food that Franco can eat.
“We decided to carry out this surgery because he didn’t achieve his ideal weight,” Castañeda said.
The inflatable silicone device, commonly called a lap-band, is expected to help Franco to lose around 150 kilograms in a period of between six months and a year.
If that goal is achieved, Franco will weigh 154 kilograms or just 26% of his peak weight. However, he is already feeling the benefits of his remarkable weight loss.
“Before I took around six to 10 steps and then I had to sit down . . . Now I can walk more than 100 steps, even 10 laps of 40 steps. It’s a breakthrough . . .” Franco told the newspaper Milenio.
He also said that his blood-sugar levels have decreased significantly and that he has been able to stop taking a lot the medications he previously used to control his diabetes, high blood pressure and obstructive pulmonary disease.
“Now I’m taking 12 pills in the morning and 12 at night. I used to inject a lot of insulin but now it’s just 20 units,” Franco said.
He is also lifting light weights and doing at least 21 squats a day and no longer depends on an oxygen tank.
“We’re making progress. It’s two years already [since the first surgery] but we’re talking about almost 300 kilograms [that I’ve lost], half my body weight . . .” Franco said.
“Yes I think about death and I’m afraid but we’ll make it through.”
In December 2016 he was certified by Guinness World Records as the world’s fattest man at 595 kilos.
Martha Armanta is the founder and president of Conrehabit, a conservation organization that provides wildlife rescue services as well as community outreach programs in the rural areas of southern Sinaloa.
I met Martha in the fall of 2006 and became involved with her wildlife rescue and rehab work. Having worked with animals for most of my life, I was very excited to get the chance to encounter some of the local fauna here.
At the time, I hadn’t given much thought to the size or ferocity of the wildlife on the western flanks of the Sierra Madre, but I would soon learn.
Conrehabit has its rehab facility on two and a half acres of jungle, 20 minutes out of town. There is a casita, a large aviary with individual cages and several wire fenced pens, all to accommodate recuperating birds, mammals and an occasional reptile.
The heavily forested site sits next to a small pond, with some seasonal water fowl, a small population of turtles and several varieties of snakes that hunt in the foliage at the margins. Within my first few moments of being at Martha’s ranchito, I learned that my friend was very afraid of snakes, especially the really big ones.
The author with a boa found on a construction site.
That was not good for her as there were paths between the animal enclosures and to the casita, but everything but the pond was a tangle of trees and brush lashed together with numerous vines, many with thorns. All were hiding snakes.
My first task as a volunteer was to selectively brush and thin the forest in such a way as to make it more open and park-like, while maintaining the native plant diversity. The standard land clearing methods here are either a Caterpillar or backhoe or campesinos with machetes.
After we had undertaken a few weeks’ work with a chainsaw, we could almost see 100 meters in two directions. During this period of sweaty labor, I had hoped to see some type of wildlife other than snakes, spiders, ticks, scorpions and a rather old raccoon that would patiently wait in the shade of the casita for a handout.
But when I got a morning call from Martha about a rescue, I knew my luck had changed. However, when she told me it was a very big snake under an RV at a local park, I wondered in which direction my luck had changed.
When we arrived at the RV park there was a small group of people gathered around the front of a motorhome where the alleged hitchhiker was reportedly hiding. I took a look. Sure enough, there was a very large boa constrictor tightly tucked between a gas line and the vehicle frame.
It became apparent that several of the men wanted to kill it and that the women had protested loudly enough to stall the execution until we arrived. Nonetheless, from the way the onlookers were talking, it seemed that no one thought it would come out either alive or in one piece.
Martha Armanta of Conrehabit.
Fortunately, boas are fairly docile and this one looked like it had eaten something recently (perhaps a small yappy dog?) and just wanted to continue its siesta. After about a half-hour of poking and prodding just enough to disturb the snaky slumber, I watched it slowly begin to unfold itself into its full eight-foot length, and reached for it.
I carefully supported the weight of the snake until it was too heavy and a bit awkward, so I looped the middle part over my head to rest on my shoulders while I had the end with the head in my left hand and the trailing three feet in my right hand.
It was about this time I realized the full name of the snake was boa constrictor. While I could feel something unwelcome happening, the boa appeared to be more curious about what was happening than wanting to constrict the neck of its captor.
When Martha and I had earlier set off from her house we had the forethought to bring along a large cardboard box and a roll of silver tape. However, only about two-thirds of the enormously corpulent and solid snake would fit into the box.
It was at that time that Martha quietly informed me she would not ride in the same vehicle with our rescue. I ended up sharing my truck with the inquisitive reptile while I drove it about five miles out of town and several more miles down a dirt road. It seemed reluctant to leave the carpeted floor of my truck, but with a little help, I had the satisfaction of watching it slither off through the dead leaves and tangled vines of the dense jungle.
About a month later, I was driving out to the ranchito with a Canadian friend when we came across another boa sunning itself on a paved road just at the outskirts of town. I hit the brakes, punched the emergency flasher switch and hopped out of my truck. I knew someone would come along and run over it, probably multiple times, if I didn’t rescue this nicely patterned rat snatcher.
I carefully picked it up (it was only a six-footer) and went around to the open passenger’s widow to hand the 15-kilo boa to my friend, only to have him recoil in stunned terror. With both arms stretched out and his hands waving me off, he sputtered, “Oh no! I’m not touching that thing!” I was beginning to think that, for some reason, these gentle jungle reptiles brought out the worst in people.
I went to the other side of the truck, opened the door, and flipped my seat forward to place the boa on the narrow back seat. I hadn’t given any thought about my faithful dog Snickers who was then occupying the space. Snickers was half coyote, and had some of the character traits which might be expected, so I wasn’t sure how she would react to sharing her space with a large reptile.
She retreated to the far corner and gave me one of her withering looks, which indicated she wasn’t happy, but would behave. Of course when the boa caught sight of an obvious predator, it became quite animated and very much wanted to return to the warm road.
By this time a number of cars had come by and several had pulled over to watch some pendejo attempting to stuff a large and uncooperative snake into a truck. About this time, my Canadian friend was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes, which really didn’t help.
I finally managed to coil the damn thing on the seat opposite the dog, push the seat back and hop in the truck. For the remainder of the drive out the ranchito, both animals had their eyes locked on each other, and both were stock still, like a couple of statues.
When we arrived at the Conrehabit facility, I took the boa to the casita where the various types of animal food were kept. Because of the grains and seeds in the casita, there were rodents, which were an ongoing problem. I knew the resident raccoon was too well fed to go after the pests, but the day’s newest addition to the menagerie would be the perfect rodent abatement solution.
I told the groundskeeper to let Martha know about the boa so she would not go in and freak out. The day on which we installed the slithery reptile was a Friday and I was not back to the ranchito until the following Wednesday when I met Martha at the facility.
I asked her about the boa we put in the casita and she said there was no snake when the groundskeeper opened up on Monday morning. So, she explained, she felt confident coming and going without a trace of her ophiophobia.
Three weeks later, I discovered the boa had been living in the underside of an old overstuffed couch on the back wall of the casita. This was where the groundskeeper would have a siesta in the afternoon. Over that three-week period there had been no new rat holes in any of the feed sacks. The handsome tongue-flicking new tenant had earned his keep.
Nonetheless, given Martha’s fears, I thought it appropriate to undertake a relocation. I carefully removed the snake and installed him in an abandoned armadillo hole at the base of an ebony tree some distance away. For years after we could always find our slithery resident either draped in the tree branches, or curled at the back of its den.
The next edition of Adventures with Martha will chronicle our journey into the Sierra Madre to the village of the jaguar caller, El Bramador.
The writer describes himself as a very middle-aged man who lives full-time in Mazatlán with a captured tourist woman and the ghost of a half wild dog. He can be reached at [email protected].
Recent public policy improvisation on the part of the incoming federal government will have an annual negative economic impact equivalent to the entire cost of the Maya train, the head of an influential business group said yesterday.
Mexican Employers Federation (Coparmex) president Gustavo de Hoyos made the claim, which translates into a cost 120 to 150 billion pesos (US $5.9-$7.4 billion), while speaking to reporters after attending a business summit in Guadalajara.
“The decisions and announcements of president-elect [López Obrador] and his team, in general terms, have cost [Mexico] one point in its country risk [rating]. That means that servicing external debt each year will cost an additional amount that is practically equivalent to the total cost of the Maya train,” he said.
That’s the cost, De Hoyos added, of making announcements that seek to make headlines but are not well thought out.
The president-elect has since announced that another referendum will be held this weekend on the Maya train, a proposed new oil refinery and a range of planned social programs.
Some analysts have warned that making important decisions based on public votes creates uncertainty in the economy that has the potential to hurt investment.
Proposals from federal lawmakers representing López Obrador’s Morena party have also had an impact on markets.
This week, the presentation of a bill in the Senate caused two major mining firms to suffer double-digit losses in the value of their shares while earlier this month, a proposal to curb bank charges sent bank stocks plummeting and caused the Mexican Stock Exchange’s benchmark IPC index to suffer its biggest single-day decline since August 2011.
De Hoyos commented: “Unfortunately in recent weeks, and it has to be said with clarity, one by one we’ve been finding messages that point to [the new government taking] another [economic] direction.
“We’re finding that the message of the [incoming] government is one of clear improvisation of public policy proposals and clear ignorance of the effects they have . . .”
The Coparmex chief said the incoming government has a great opportunity once in office based on the electoral legitimacy it obtained in the July 1 election. López Obrador won in a landslide and the Morena-led coalition now has a majority in both houses of Congress.
But he added that it should be capitalized upon by carrying out projects and programs that have been thoroughly analyzed.
With regard to legislative proposals from individuals or small groups of Morena lawmakers that have hurt the market and caused a loss of confidence, de Hoyos said:
“We hope that these kinds of events don’t repeat because in the end, it’s not the business sector that pays but all of Mexico.”
Cuastecomates was the first disabled-inclusive beach in Mexico.
Puerto Vallarta may soon have a beach that caters to the disabled.
Municipal authorities in the Jalisco city are planning to develop what would be the state’s second disabled-inclusive beach, using the Cuastecomates beach in the southern municipality of Cihuatlán as a model.
Cuastecomates became the first such beach in Mexico two years ago through a 47-million-peso investment (US $2.3-million at today’s exchange rate) that converted the small coastal town’s infrastructure, leaving it ready to receive disabled visitors of all ages.
The plan is now to repeat the mostly successful results obtained at Cuastecomates at a second beach in the state.
Cuastecomates offers signs in Braille, handicapped access, wheelchairs for the beach, amphibious crutches, specially designed vessels for snorkeling and other amenities.
The government of Morelos is proposing a new regional train to connect the airports of Mexico City and Cuernavaca.
Intended to reduce the number of vehicles on highways between the cities, the project has been described as a priority for Morelos Governor Cuauhtémoc Blanco Bravo, who will formally present it in an upcoming meeting of the National Conference of Governors.
The train would make one stop at the southern Mexico City bus and subway hub in Tasqueña.
As for the actual route, the government of Morelos is contemplating two options: following the original railway that operated until the 1980s or following the path of the toll highway.
The investment needed has not been disclosed, but Governor Blanco intends to modify applicable regulations to allow for a private-public investor scheme.
A government spokesman said the project was one of the most important in the new administration’s infrastructure plans.
Governor Corral at the Impunity Expo exhibition in Mexico City.
The government of Chihuahua has opened a so-called “Impunity Expo” in Mexico City to showcase evidence of corruption allegedly committed by former governor César Duarte.
Set up in the government offices known as Casa Chihuahua, the exhibition displays photographs of several ranches that Duarte purchased while governor of the northern state between 2010 and 2016.
It also shows information about his alleged embezzlement of more than 1.2 billion pesos (US $58.9 million at today’s exchange rate) as well as images of other officials who were allegedly complicit in the ex-governor’s corruption.
An Interpol Red Notice issued for the fugitive former governor is also on display. Duarte fled Mexico early last year and is believed to be living in the United States.
The exhibition is officially called “Impunity Expo: the plundering of César Duarte, protected by the regime” can be visited free of charge.
Chihuahua Governor Javier Corral, who has made bringing Duarte to justice a central aim of his administration, said at the expo’s opening that he was confident the incoming federal government would continue the process to extradite the former governor to Mexico.
The extradition process, he added, is currently stalled.
However, Corral conceded that president-elect López Obrador’s declaration that those implicated in corruption cases could be pardoned was disheartening.
Nevertheless, he said that he had spoken to the future foreign secretary, Marcelo Ebrard, about the issue and urged him to pursue Duarte’s extradition.
“It’s one of the issues Marcelo Ebrard has . . . dealt with in the transition with current Foreign Secretary Luis Videgaray,” Corral said.
The National Action Party (PAN) leader stressed that his government would not rest until the former Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) governor has been arrested and returned to Mexico.
He once again accused the federal government of protecting Duarte from prosecution despite 20 warrants having been issued for his arrest.
Corral was also critical of the Supreme Court’s decision earlier this month to grant provisional protection to President Peña Nieto and members of his cabinet that prevents them from being targeted by the Chihuahua government’s corruption probe.
“In reality, what they intend to give him as an ex-president is an extension of the fuero [immunity against prosecution]. They’re going to take off his presidential sash and put an amparo [injunction] in his suit pocket . . . Peña Nieto wants to extend his fuero as president of the republic,” he said.
