LatinNews Daily - 12 July 2016

Development: On 11 July Mexico’s federal attorney general’s office (PGR) filed a legal challenge on constitutional grounds before the supreme court (SCJN) against reforms approved by the state legislatures of Quintana Roo, Veracruz, and Chihuahua states, which it argues run counter to “the principles of the national anti-corruption system [SNA]” approved by the federal government led by President Enrique Peña Nieto.

Significance: The issue of corruption was a major factor in the electoral defeats for the ruling Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) in Quintana Roo, Veracruz, and Chihuahua in the 5 June gubernatorial, state legislative, and municipal elections. Allegations of embezzlement and malfeasance bedevilled the incumbent PRI governors in each of the three states in question, and the incoming opposition, led by the right-wing Partido Acción Nacional (PAN), has announced its intention to prosecute them. The PGR said that the states must wait for the secondary legislation recently approved by the federal congress to enact the SNA and then adjust state laws accordingly and launch their own state anti-corruption systems rather than try to circumvent this legislation by taking pre-emptive action in a bid to shield outgoing governors from future corruption investigations.

End of preview - This article contains approximately 373 words.

Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article

Not a Subscriber?

Choose from one of the following options

• Subscribe
• Sign up for a one-time, 14-day trial