Austerity plan proposed by the 4T to the INE has no support or seriousness: Lorenzo Córdova

The President Councilor of National Electoral Institute (OTHER), Lorenzo Córdova, considered that the austerity plan proposed by the federal government so that the institute can “save” 2,972 million pesos, and allocate them to the mandate revocation query.

By participating in the forum “Democracy in Mexico”, organized by the PRD parliamentary group in the Chamber of Deputies, the president councilor of the OTHER He said that there is a lack of knowledge about the functioning of the electoral institute and that said actions seem to only seek to violate the autonomy of the institute.

“They have just discovered how to lower the cost of OTHERWell, it is necessary to unmask when these proposals are formulated, well, let’s say, without any minimum technical support and some seriousness.

“It must be shown that, for example, whoever makes these proposals does not know how the OTHER, because it is said ‘ah, we are in a proposal without affecting the rights of the unionized workers of the institute’, well, in the INE there are no unions. And it is obvious that there are no unions in the INE, because imagine a strike call the day before an election, but this profound ignorance must be evidenced”, explained Córdova Vianello.

Likewise, he warned that in case of doing what was suggested in the austerity program elaborated by the federal government, he would be violating the sentences and resolutions of the SCJN and the Electoral Court of the Judicial Power of the Federation (TEPJF), this by pointing out that recently the superior court of the court established that the budgetary adjustments for the revocation of the mandate must be made without affecting the constitutional, legal and statutory obligations of the electoral body, as well as the labor rights of the personnel.

The electoral adviser said that he did not know if the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) will give them the budget increase requested to carry out the mandate revocation process, but what was seen in the session of the General Council of the INE on Wednesday and the austerity proposal presented at the morning conference this Thursday at the National Palace, makes it clear that in reality they want to use the consultation exercise to “win what has not been won in court.”

In addition to pointing out that, despite all the disqualifications against the OTHER, today it is the citizen institution with the highest levels of trust by the population.

Lorenzo Córdova Vianello He also lamented the pressure exerted on the electoral body through criminal complaints, since he considered that the most serious thing is that the criminal arm of the State be used against those who think differently and added that criminal complaints against councilors of OTHER for having voted an agreement within their attributions, remain open.

“Once someone crosses that line and activates the criminal arm of the State against public servants, it does not stop until the Prosecutor’s Office closes the investigation files and today those files are open, they are in good health and inquiries are being made. . Which speaks, I insist, of additional harassment of control bodies that are uncomfortable,” he said.

And it was recalled that on December 23, 2021, the criminal complaint filed by the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Sergio Gutiérrez Luna, against six counselors of the OTHER for having approved an agreement through which some activities of the Revocation of Mandate were postponed, while the budgetary situation to carry out the exercise of citizen participation was resolved.

Although later the president of the Lower House indicated that said complaint would be withdrawn, until now no document is known that gives guarantees on an action that reverses said investigations.

The president counselor of the National Electoral Institute assured that the revocation of the mandate will be carried out and it will be at that moment when it is demonstrated that the OTHER He was never against this democratic exercise.

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