"Let them be serenaded," says López Obrador to Mexican ex-claimants without a pension
The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, today asked the exmandatarios of the country to "calm down and calm down" after losing the pension they enjoyed, contemplated so far in the budgets.
In the budget "we avoided unnecessary spending, there was much waste for everything, nothing more in salaries, there are those who are upset, but there will be no pensions for former presidents," the leftist leader said in his morning press conference.
He explained that there were ex-governors with up to 80 elements at his service and earning "double" what he will perceive as president, about 108,000 pesos per month (about $ 5,300).
"They are upset but it is not with me, it is with the law, that they calm down, that they calm down," he added.
This Saturday the Minister of Finance, Carlos Urzúa, presented before the Chamber of Deputies a draft budget for 2019 with a social turn and more programs, which includes expenditures of 5,814 billion pesos (about 286,400 million dollars).
"The poor have never received before as they will receive in 2019," said the leader of the National Regeneration Movement (Brunette) about the Economic Package 2019, which must be approved by the deputies.
He indicated that the budget is "responsible" and "balanced" and does not seek to indebt the country, fighting "at the same time" corruption and impunity.
The Business Coordinating Council (CCE) considered that the budget gives "good signals" for the markets because it is realistic, but criticized that the measures adopted will not detonate growth and are mainly welfare-oriented.
On this, López Obrador replied that he respects "this point of view" but "it makes me hypocritical to criticize when a government helps the poor and applaud when financial institutions are rescued," and it seems that "they do not want a welfare state."
About the problem of fuel theft in Mexico, said that next week will present a general plan to address this crime, which causes losses for Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) of up to 80,000 million pesos (about 3,940 million dollars) annually.
Regarding the construction of the Mayan Train in the Mexican southeast, one of the main works projected in its mandate, indicated that the 6,000 million dollars (about 295 million dollars) stipulated this 2019 in the budget are only "seed capital", since it requires a private investment two or three times higher.
About the creation of the National Guard, a new institution made up of soldiers, sailors and federal police and led by the Army, explained that at first it will be made up of 20,000 elements, until reaching 50,000 troops when there are new recruits.
