Summary – Morning Presidential Press Conference – Monday, August 14, 2023

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador welcomed the news that, despite the pandemic, between 2018 and 2022 his government has managed to lift five million people out of poverty, something that had not happened in 40 years. “I am pleased because the economic and well-being strategy has yielded good results,” he said.

President López Obrador denounced the Chihuahua state government and the Supreme Court (SCJN) for preventing the distribution of free textbooks based on the former having filed a constitutional challenge. He charged that the ruling was reactionary, conservative, irresponsible and politically motivated. Therefore, he reiterated the urgency of reforming the Judicial Branch so that judges are elected by the people.

The head of the Executive Branch called on parents to get to know the new textbooks, through the Ministry of Public Education’s (SEP) televised conferences held at 5:00 p.m. or through the web page conaliteg.sep.gob.mx, and then decide whether or not they should be distributed in the states that have blocked their delivery. He charged that the smear campaign against the new textbooks comes from the conservative opposition.

After the National Electoral Institute (INE) forced the Mexican State Public Broadcasting System to remove the profiles of the candidates for coordinator of the Committees in Defense of the Fourth Transformation, the President said that the faculties of the electoral bodies must be seriously reviewed so that their decisions do not violate constitutional rights. He said no one should be censored.

The Mexican government reported that construction and related work projects on Section 1 of the Mayan Train, which goes from Palenque to Escárcega, is progressing. The Tenosique viaduct has been completed; the Escárcega station is 88% complete, and the Palenque Hotel is 21% finished.

The head of the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources, María Luisa Albores, reported that along the Mayan Train route there are 10 protected natural areas, among them the Gran Calakmul Region, which covers 1.5 million hectares. The protected land is equivalent to 10 times the size of Mexico City.