The journalist pointed out that Claudia Sheinbaum faces a complicated situation due to decisions made by the previous government, which allegedly left areas in the hands of organized crime.
Journalist Héctor de Mauleón warned that Mexico is facing institutional regression and a deterioration in security due to decisions made during Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s six-year term. He argued that the growth of organized crime and its infiltration of politics have left the country vulnerable to the United States.
The analyst noted that, despite the official discourse of transformation and combating violence, the reality faced by millions of Mexicans is a loss of peace, increased extortion, and the territorial control of criminal groups in various regions of the country.
During the six years of the previous federal administration, the advance of organized crime was “brutal,” to the point that a study conducted in every municipality revealed a criminal presence in 81 percent of the national territory.
He explained that this analysis documented executions, clashes between criminal groups, and confrontations with state and federal forces, creating a map “covered in red zones.”
He added that, while a triumphalist discourse about the transformation of the country was maintained from the National Palace, the population was subjected to fear, extortion, and the loss of public spaces and highways.
The advance of crime in Mexico was brutal during López Obrador’s six years in office. The population was subjected to extortion, lost their nightlife, lost their highways, and people disappeared, while those in power spoke of a country experiencing stellar times. When that six-year term ended, we found a devastated landscape, and the most serious issue is that in many places there is no longer any way to separate organized crime from the government.
Héctor de Mauleón maintained that during that period, a trend of criminal infiltration into Mexican politics worsened, a situation that, he affirmed, was reflected in cases like that of Sinaloa.
According to him, since 2021 there have been allegations of criminal groups interfering in electoral processes to favor Morena party candidates through illegal financing and acts of intimidation against opponents. He also pointed out that these allegations were ignored by the authorities and subsequently defended publicly by the federal government.
Furthermore, he argued that the reduction in intentional homicides touted by the federal government does not reflect a real improvement in security, but rather the consolidation of hegemonic organized crime groups in different regions of the country. He explained that this “narco peace” generates an apparent decrease in confrontations because there are territories completely dominated by a single criminal organization, which imposes fees and controls everyday economic activities.
The journalist emphasized that there are currently communities where organized crime sets prices for basic goods, charges fees to merchants, and demands payments for even the smallest economic activities.
Regarding the current president, Claudia Sheinbaum, De Mauleón opined that she faces a complex scenario stemming from decisions made during the previous six-year term and noted that the accusations from US authorities against Mexican officials and political actors represent an unprecedented event in the country’s recent history.
Source: oem
