Crime has been combated and violence has decreased: Sheinbaum

Mexico City. The Mexican government has arrested and extradited several organized crime figures. “It is not that nothing has been done. In fact, violence has decreased,” said the virtual president-elect, Claudia Sheinbaum, on Tuesday.

Following the arrest in the United States of drug traffickers Ismael El Mayo Zambada and Joaquín Guzmán López, which took place amid conflicting reports about possible negotiations between the government of the neighboring country and Guzmán López, son of the former leader of the Sinaloa cartel, Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán Loera, the Morena member spoke out in favor of asking for more information, and noted that so far the data provided by the U.S. authorities has been “sketchy.”

“There has to be information. Yesterday I heard the report given by the Secretary of Security on the letter sent by the United States, which is what we know so far. It is brief but it says that they did not know about the delivery until Thursday morning, that is what they are presenting as official information to Mexico. Yesterday I was reading other interpretations but the only thing we have at this moment is the official information from the United States embassy to the Attorney General of the Republic. So, we have to continue asking for information.”

At the same time, he defended the federal government’s performance in matters of security during the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

“And this criticism that Mexico did not intervene (in the arrest of Zambada), we must always tell the truth. Mexico has arrested various figures from organized crime. Now with the government of President López Obrador and the current Attorney General, they have been extradited, it is not that nothing has been done. So much so that violence has decreased,” he added.

Asked about this case at a press conference, she also called for “not speculating” on this issue.

Among the issues he addressed at his transition house, he noted that among the 20 initiatives, the majority of constitutional reforms that will be addressed by the Congress of the Union, it is expected that the one on the Judicial Branch will be discussed first, followed by those related to indigenous and African-American peoples, as well as social programs.

It will be after that when the rest will be analyzed, including autonomous bodies. He insisted that the proposal is not to eliminate their functions, but to include them within various secretariats. Regarding the reform of the Judicial Branch, he pointed out that “some modifications are being worked on, I understand, to the original proposal,” but he stressed that the election of judges was a mandate from the population expressed in the last elections.

Announces Investments of 40 billion dollars

Sheinbaum Pardo also announced that “there is investment planned in our country for more than 40 billion dollars,” expected to take place in the remainder of 2024 and throughout 2025. She explained that the next Secretary of Economy, Marcelo Ebrard, has worked on the issue of investments, as well as the development poles planned for the coming years.

Regarding Tesla’s recent announcement to suspend its project in Mexico until the end of the next presidential elections in the United States, he said he had no information on the company’s financial situation, but “we have to see what happens with Tesla in the future. It’s not that this possibility has been closed off. Obviously, the electoral issue always plays a role. We’re going to wait for the results of the elections in the United States, and next year, different options may arise.”

At the same time, he noted that Republican candidate Donald Trump, who is seeking to return to the White House, has indicated that the trade agreement with Mexico and Canada “is very good, that it should not even be revised” and that he does not intend to do so.

He also referred to the restriction that the government is seeking for the use of glyphosate in food production. He clarified that in addition to this herbicide, other agrochemicals should be reviewed.

“There was a lot of emphasis on glyphosate, but speaking with Julio Berdegué, who is the next secretary, he showed me a series of products that are prohibited. For example, glyphosate is not necessarily prohibited elsewhere, but there are other products that are already prohibited in other parts of the world, including the United States, and that are still used in Mexico. So, it is not just this product in particular, but we must carry out a review and, to the extent possible, generate consensus.”

At her transition house, Sheinbaum Pardo announced that next weekend she will have activities with President López Obrador in Chiapas, Tabasco and Veracruz. After the weekend is over, there will be five more states left for her to travel the entire country again. She indicated that after that she will continue to accompany the president in various inaugurations.