The National Electoral Institute had said that it does not have enough resources to do it. The president sees it as a possibility for support.
This Thursday the Electoral Tribunal of the Judicial Power of the Federation (TEPJF) determined that the National Electoral Institute (INE) of Mexico must explore alternatives to carry out the consultation on the revocation of the mandate of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
“The plenary session of the Superior Chamber of the TEPJF determined, by unanimous votes of the magistrates present, to revoke the agreement of the General Council of the INE, in order for this institute to explore other alternatives of budget management to carry out the process of revocation of mandate and guarantee citizen participation, “the judicial body detailed in a bulletin this Thursday.
As the statement recalled, on December 17, the General Council of the INE approved an agreement by which, taking into account “the principle of certainty and in view of the budget insufficiency derived from the reduction to the budget” that it requested from the Chamber of Deputies for the fiscal year 2022, determined “to temporarily postpone the execution of the mandate revocation process.”
“In order to challenge this decision, the President of the Republic, the National Regeneration Movement (Morena) and Labor (PT) political parties, as well as various citizens, presented various lawsuits and appeals before the Superior Chamber of the TEPJF “added the text.
Of the various appeals issued, the electoral tribunal considered that the one presented by the ruling party Morena and his ally PT met the provenance requirements.
After the analysis, the court determined that the General Council of the INE has no powers or justified cause to postpone or interrupt the process of revocation of the mandate, “considering the stage it is in and the existence of mechanisms to solve a possible budget insufficiency” .
In this way, the TEPJF asked the INE to “carry out and manage the necessary adjustments to its budget” in order to guarantee the adequate development of the scheduled activities in the mandate revocation process.
“If the insufficiency persists, that the INE take the necessary steps before the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) to request the budgetary extensions,” he concluded.
The revocation of mandate, included in the Constitution in a reform two years ago, is one of the main proposals of President López Obrador and has been criticized by the opposition for using it as a “ratification” and not a revocation of mandate, in addition to limit the INE’s budget to carry it out.
The postponement of the consultation – initially scheduled for April 2022 – had aroused diverse reactions, since while representatives of the opposition parties celebrated the resolution; while pro-government governors asked the electoral body to reconsider the decision.
To carry out the mandate revocation consultation, the support of 3% of the citizens registered in the nominal list of voters is required, which is equivalent to around 2.75 million people, from at least 17 of the 32 states that make up the country.
On December 25, the deadline to collect the necessary signatures expired and the INE is currently analyzing the rubrics.
Questioned by the press this Thursday at the conference from the National Palace, López Obrador said that yesterday’s resolution is “very important.”
“What is clear, and it is what should be spread more, known and shouted from the rooftops, is that there is going to be a consultation,” reiterated the president, who unraveled the resolution of the electoral court and criticized the INE for, supposedly, spending in excess in travel, per diem and vehicle rental. (I)
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