By Polo Munoz, Managing Editor/Publisher
Mexico begins a new every six years, and this year is a new start with a president that has been connected to the common people of Mexico his whole life. His opponents both from the left and the right started accusing him of being incompetent, fraudulent and/or inexperienced the moment he won the elections, today being his inauguration day, his journey begins and we will see. As we have seen in our own experience, the myth of the businessman as diplomatic/political leader is just a myth.
There is so much speculation about what might happen, however the beauty of Mexicans has always been the resilience and wisdom that they have exercised to survive and evolved during centuries of repression, malfeasance and betrayal from their government. The desperate attempt to survive and thrive has come from them holding tight to the noble heroes that have sacrificed much from the beginning of the republic, Padre Hidalgo y Costilla, Benito Juarez and revolutionaries like Emiliano Zapata and many more. The inability or unwillingness of the political class and the wealthy to give a sit at the table to all of the people of Mexico is what this referendum is all about.
On the last day of his presidency, the outgoing president decided to humiliate himself by betraying the trust of the Mexican people by awarding the son in law of the US president who insulted and denigrated the Mexican people, the Order of the Aztec Eagle, the highest decoration awarded to foreigners in the country. That is an example of what the people of Mexico have had to endure, overlords who feel that they can do what ever they want with impunity; “chingones” and the unfortunate forced acceptance from lack of power by the people and dire consequences when making a stand.
The hope that AMLO, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, is not that he will change Mexico and the culture of power grabbing overnight, but that there will be enough reforms put in place and executed during this next six years that the general population, will be able to have a say in the future of their Republic. Mexico is not a democracy, it’s a Federal Republic, the government is run top down, which is why proper representation is so critical in Mexico.
The likelihood that he will accomplish all he outlined in his inaugural speech will be very tough, but he has given the Mexican people a new road and the Mexican government an new mandate, to serve the people.
The flurry of criticism was immediate, focused on the neo-liberal concern of, how do you pay for it? The fact is simple, the role of a leader is to inspire confidence and propose new opportunities and give the populace an opportunity to make their lives better, government is the tool through which those opportunities are supposed to be managed. AMLO is a leader, a proven warrior, may be the Mexican citizens will also prove to be who he hopes they are. The Mexican people hope he is who he claims to be and does what he says he will do.
