A referendum allowing Mexicans to vote midterm on whether the president should remain in office has become a strange political football involving all three branches of government.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced gleefully on Monday that his supporters had collected 10 million signatures in favour of the referendum — several times more than is legally required. Though this could put his future at risk.
There is little apparent reason to hold the referendum and the constitution does not require it. Mr Lopez Obrador has received positive ratings from about two thirds of those polled and would no doubt win the vote to serve out the second half of his six-year term.
But the president's political style consists of constant campaigning: he was on the campaign trail non-stop from 2005 to 2018 — and he seems to enjoy it.
So, he is demanding a referendum, even though it will cost about $200 million and electoral authorities say they do not have enough money.
The issue went all the way to the Supreme Court, which ordered the National Electoral Institute to hold the April 10 referendum anyway.
And some members of Congress, dominated by the president's Morena party, weighed in by filing a criminal complaint essentially accusing electoral officials of blocking democracy.
With the signatures in hand, the president now considers the matter settled and appears to wish that criminal complaint would go away.
“Let the people decide, let it be the people,” Mr Lopez Obrador said. “Let's end the complaints and the accusation and organise it already.”
The opposition National Action Party calls the referendum “a very expensive and unconstitutional piece of political theatre” and said the money would better be spent on creating jobs, reactivating the pandemic-battered economy and alleviating poverty.
Patricio Morelos, professor at the Monterrey Institute of Technological Higher Education, said Mr Lopez Obrador is eager to hold the vote because it was one of his campaign promises. It would also serve to energise his political base before the 2022 gubernatorial races and the 2024 presidential elections.
The National Electoral Institute wrote in a statement that the criminal complaint from the members of Congress was an act of “intimidation and an attack on our autonomy".
While the institute is independent and non-partisan, Mr Lopez Obrador has frequently accused its member of being “conservatives” that are opposed to his policies.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BlacKkKlansman
Director: Spike Lee
Starring: John David Washington; Adam Driver
Five stars
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Slow loris biog
From: Lonely Loris is a Sunda slow loris, one of nine species of the animal native to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore
Status: Critically endangered, and listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list due to growing demand in the global exotic pet trade. It is one of the most popular primate species found at Indonesian pet markets
Likes: Sleeping, which they do for up to 18 hours a day. When they are awake, they like to eat fruit, insects, small birds and reptiles and some types of vegetation
Dislikes: Sunlight. Being a nocturnal animal, the slow loris wakes around sunset and is active throughout the night
Superpowers: His dangerous elbows. The slow loris’s doe eyes may make it look cute, but it is also deadly. The only known venomous primate, it hisses and clasps its paws and can produce a venom from its elbow that can cause anaphylactic shock and even death in humans
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
Key products and UAE prices
iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229
iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649
iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179
Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.
Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
