Political corruption is something that people do not necessarily have a deep understanding of, however, they do know that it exists and affects their daily lives; it exists especially in the core of Mexico´s political and government systems. Maria Amparo Casar; is a distinguished academic and pundit with, Ph.D. in social and political sciences. B.A. Faculty of Political Sciences, National Autonomous University of Mexico (U.N.A.M.), Master and Ph.D. from Cambridge University, King’s College; defines corruption as “the abuse of any position of power, public or private, in order to generate an undue benefit at the cost of collective or individual well-being”. Likewise, J.S Nye, Geopolitician, political scientist, and professor, defines corruption as a “behavior which deviates from the formal duties or a public role, because of a private-regarding (personal, close, family.) pecuniary or status gains; or violates rules against the excesses of certain types of private-regarding influence. Is corruption embedded so much in Mexican daily life, that it has become a way of government rather than an isolated act?
Political corruption in Mexico is apparently broad and generalized, complex and widespread. Understanding its complexity should imply the recognition of a number of variables that defines it, such as moral concepts, ethics, as wells as religious and/or cultural standards. Unscrupulous behavior and actions from federal, state, and local government officials in Mexico, have given place to the generalized perception that they are untrustworthy and greedy. The government´s general record on the matter has deeply damaged its reputation for ethical performance, showing evident political corruption and lack of pursuit of the public best interests.
Such an issue, (political corruption in Mexico), has been happening since the outset of the Spanish conquest in the 16th century and until our current days. Corruption has evolved over time, changed with society, and even with new technologies, maintaining a vicious symbiosis between government and citizens in Mexico. It appears to be, that it has increased appallingly in the last 40 years or so, causing productive, economic, financial, academic, political, and social sectors to suffer corrosion and disrupted collaboration among them.
Some government periods in Mexico have been known for all the negative impacts that corruption caused on Mexican society and economy. They caused many economic depressions, such as the one in 1976, or the devaluation of the peso in 1982, bringing scarcity of basic products, or the capital loss of December of 1994, all due to lack of proper communication, and the predominance of sectorial interests over the nations best interests. Supposed efforts to end corruption have taken place over time, bringing apparent scapegoats, but leaving the majority of corrupt officials without punishment. From 1970 to 1976 in the government of President Luis Echeverría, two state governors were accused of embezzlement, one for deviating 36 million pesos and the other 400 million pesos. (Stephen D. Morris) This government was also accused of granting government positions to people with a questionable reputation, in exchange for political favors. (
Upon the conclusion of President Lopez Portillo´s period, he was accused of embezzling more than 20 billion pesos. There are plenty of records of charges of kickbacks, bribery, and nepotism during his government. In this order of ideas, Jose Ancona Hoyo, President of Honduras, was interviewed by Excelsior and he assured that Lopez Portillo “took hundreds of million or billion of dollars” during his six-year government.
President Carlos Salinas Gortari (1988-1994) campaigned against corruption that could involve corrupt federal, state, and local authorities, and promised to do something about it. However, this never came into reality. This campaign fizzled because it was promoted by the same public authorities that did acts such as bribery, extortion, fraud, and embezzlement.
With the government of Enrique Peña Nieto, president of Mexico (2012-2018) corruption reached a new top. There was a colossal unbalance in Mexico´s economy due to all the money that Peña Nieto and his government deviated or embezzled, through felonies such as fraud, extortion, etc. adding nepotism to the list. (Mexico´s anticorruption spring 21-24) After his six-year government period, Mexico had a debt of around 8.315 trillion pesos (8.315 billion, if defining the amount in Spanish), which represented a 35.3% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). (Jose Ivan Rodriguez Sanchez)
Mexico has gone through many years of suffering in the economic, productive, social, financial, academic, and political sectors as a result of all the corruption acts caused by governments in the last decades. Despite all the campaigns, legal reforms, and prosecutions of public officials that were done, the level of political corruption has not decreased, on the contrary, it has increased shockingly in the last few years (Jose Ivan Rdriguez-Sanchez,). Today, corruption in Mexico is no furthermore only an act, it is how Mexico´s government functions and blends together, and it has reached endemic proportions.
Corrupt acts are normally cloaked in secrecy and hidden from public view and these acts involve embezzlement from a plenty variety of public authorities. (Coskun Can Aktan,). They abuse the trust of Mexican citizens by using their money for their own benefit. The problem with corruption is that when a public server commits an illegal act, they do not take any accountability and rarely there is any punishment for the felonies, which constitutes impunity.
Inequality plays an important role in political corruption since it is known that Mexico´s government functions with a pyramidal system in which only high-class people can take political positions, hence the majority of the government functions according to the high social class interests, which mostly prevails in high levels of and promotes fraud, impunity, nepotism, and favoritism. Due to all the money that is stolen, and it is not fairly distributed between the true needs of the country, as a result, less privileged citizens do not have the opportunity to afford, food, education, and/ or housing.
The National Evaluation Council for Social Development Policies (CONEVAL) shows the situation under which Mexicans live. It shows that 41.9% live in poverty, 7.4% are in extreme poverty, 6.9% are vulnerable due to their low income, and 29.3% are vulnerable due to social deprivation. Most Mexicans, live in a bad economic situation as a result of all the corrupt acts that are done by most of the government, which keep benefits from getting to them.
A vast number of Mexicans complain that in order to get things done at government offices, they are required to pay bribes to government officials or suffer from extortion. These are, of course, unnecessary expenditures that bleed families´ economies.
Corruption has evolved to be probably the most dangerous and damaging problem in Mexico. Over several decades of uncontrolled corruption, it has affected and infiltrated the most important state institutions of the nation, such as those in charge of providing safety and security to citizens, judges whose main job is to provide and seek justice for victims of felonies and crimes, as well as limiting the accessibility of citizens to fundamental services such as education or health.
Mexico´s governments at all levels, seem to be functioning by abusing their power and looking for their own sectorial or partisan benefits as they grow their economic power, always overlooking their fellow citizens´ best interests.
An interesting reflection is who would put an end to this rotten system if it appears to be that anyone who reaches government posts, enters this faulty game; and if they don´t, they are outcasted and ignored.