The first years of the oil industry are marked by inexperience, extremely low productivity, and the creation of a huge business for some of the military, but not for the Army or the Nation. It was several decades later, and after a huge investment, that Pemex began to contribute significantly to the budget, eventually becoming a burden on it. Today he lives on borrowed money, with an illegal endorsement from the federal government.
Although the federal Executive usually criticizes Felipe Calderón and Enrique Peña Nieto, they were the ones who paved the way for carrying out the useless and very serious measure that it has adopted, since, through two reforms of 2009 and 2012, the temporary occupation allows inflicting the same, or worse patrimonial damage, than expropriation.
The dispute between Germán Larrea and Andrés Manuel López Obrador is multifactorial. It is true that the railways, the subject of the controversy, had been on the table for some time, but also the fact that the sale of Banamex would not produce the large income from taxes that the government expected, put the relationship in a state of confrontation.
That’s right, once the value of the asset has been updated, the sale price does not yield the much-awaited resources, having led a certain adviser to propose that part of the price be paid as “contributions”, even if they were not owed, this in spirit of calming the anger of those who would have to go out and say that, like those before, they would not receive payment for the transaction.
This being the case, the acquisition would severely affect the image of the outgoing president, for which reason a draconian measure would put a convenient distance from the businessman, necessary if he decided to close the purchase under these conditions, although, clearly, the times are no longer sufficient to take the out the announced project.
Given the business reaction, he offers an agreement that he will not comply with. The law establishes a complex mechanism that will be used as a pretext, on the other side, the stock market will be the bastion of defense, everything is calculated.
The federal Executive has been emphatic, whether it rains, shines or is not finished, the works will be inaugurated, so the occupation is irrelevant, which, like its vacancy, is temporary. The reality is that the measure produces not only operational damage, but also structural damage to the company that once found a way to make “contributions”, without ever knowing how, or for how much, or through whom.
Cárdenas is an important reference for the president, although his family has already put their line, moving away from him. For López Obrador, doing what he did is historically validated. As is everything that Juárez would have done. It is opportune to remember that the presidential election of 1871 was not only marred by severe accusations of fraud, but that, in the long run, it provoked the movement that led Porfirio Díaz Mori to the presidency.