Party Slams Transport Control Shift to State

Cancún, Mexico — Roberto Marín, the coordinator of municipal authorities for the Movimiento Ciudadano party, has characterized the Benito Juárez municipal government's decision to cede authority over public passenger transport to the State Government as unacceptable.

"From my point of view, inclusive as the coordinator of municipal authorities for Movimiento Ciudadano in Quintana Roo, it is something unacceptable, it is something that the City Council must fight for, so that the income of the municipalities stays with the municipalities," he stated.

Marín reiterated that the municipality's faculties should be conserved and not granted to the state government, arguing that the state government already has sufficient resources for its own actions while municipalities are becoming poorer every day.

He emphasized that the municipality has to attend directly to the citizenry and that resources must be safeguarded. He lamented that with each such action, similar to what occurred in Cozumel where he serves as a councilor when driver's licenses were handed over to the state government and the income from cruise passengers was surrendered, the capacities of municipalities to be autonomous are deteriorated.

"My opinion as a councilor of a municipality is that it is something totally unacceptable. Why? Because day by day they are handing over functions to the state government that are the municipality's responsibility. And also, what does this mean? It means ceasing to collect income and the municipality's own autonomy to be able to provide services to citizens," he said.

The municipal president of Benito Juárez, Ana Patricia Peralta de la Peña, has confirmed that the municipality will hand over control of public transport concessions to the State Government in a bid to improve the service.