President López Obrador expressed his concern over the privileges justices and judges receive in the Judicial Branch’s budget, calling such spending offensive. He anticipated that the conservative block in the Chamber of Deputies is making agreements to file an appeal challenging the constitutionality of the judiciary budget cutbacks. He reiterated that the elimination of judiciary trusts will not affect employees.
The Chief Executive emphasized that if the Chamber of Deputies approved the bill and Judicial Branch trusts are eliminated, the 15 billion pesos ($US830 million) could be earmarked for scholarships for poor children in basic education. The President also highlighted savings of 10 billion pesos (US$550 million) by cancelling onerous private sector contracts in prisons, gas pipelines, and highway maintenance.
President López Obrador criticized the new injunction against the distribution of free textbooks in Chihuahua and asked the governor to facilitate their distribution. He called for using common sense and emphasized that by blocking the distribution of these materials, the only ones harmed are the students.
The President announced a meeting, on October 22, in Palenque, with Latin American and Caribbean leaders to discuss migration. He expressed his concern over the growth in migratory flows and the need to work with the United States and address the causes of this phenomenon in the migrants’ places of origin.
The President announced that this coming weekend he will visit the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to inspect the railway line that connects with the Maya Train. He plans to supervise the 300 kilometers of railroad tracks connecting Coatzacoalcos with Salina Cruz, the rehabilitation of the ports, and the progress of the coker plant at the Salina Cruz refinery.
