Mexico to Develop Anti-Corruption System Following 43 Missing University Students, President Enrique Pena Nieto and Wife Angelica Rivera's House Scandal
With allegations of police turning students over to drug gangs and public officials getting insider deals on luxury homes, Mexico is in the midst of a crisis of confidence. In an effort to address the public's lack of faith in its government, Mexico is introducing an independent court to sanction public servants for corruption offenses.
According to Reuters, Mexico's congress will discuss a new anti-corruption system during its current term.
Juan Portal, the man who heads Mexico's Federal Audit Office (ASF), optimistically sees his country will soon suspend their suspicions. He said there appears to be a vast agreement on key facets of the impending plan.
Since it was revealed that Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, his wife, and Finance Minister Luis Videgaray bought houses from companies that won government contracts, the reputation of Mexico's government has been severely tarnished.
Portal feels the time for change has come and that this change will be easily accepted/
"At this point it seems like things are going well; there's consensus that there should be an independent court. We need just one body with the power to sanction all aspects of government," Portal said.
As of now, the ASF has the power to recommend sanctions based on the audits it conducts.
The recommendations it makes are passed along to Mexico's Public Administration Ministry, which overlooks teams of investigators compensated by the ministries and government entities they are charged with regulating.
Reuters found, while investigating the state oil company Pemex, the internal investigators nearly never applied any sanctions the ASF recommended.
According to Portal, once the the independent court was in place it would address the problem in which Mexico's internal investigators acted as both judge and jury.
Subscribe to Latin Post!
Sign up for our free newsletter for the Latest coverage!
* This is a contributed article and this content does not necessarily represent the views of latinpost.com