“There was not good coordination with the Secretaría de Gobernación, and there was not good coordination with the military,” Eric Olson said, referring to Mexico’s internal affairs agency, also known as Segob. The risk now, he added, is the potential to recreate the same bureaucracy.
New York Times, 12/29/2012
Eric L. Olson, a senior associate at the Mexico Institute of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, praised the new program’s call for better coordination. Under the leadership of Mr. Calderón, he said, agencies were too independent of one another.
“There was not good coordination with the Secretaría de Gobernación, and there was not good coordination with the military,” Mr. Olson said, referring to Mexico’s internal affairs agency, also known as Segob. The risk now, he added, is the potential to recreate the same bureaucracy. “It could also mean you have a ministry like Segob that’s so powerful that it’s not very accountable or transparent,” he said.
But the emphasis on coordination is positive, he added, and the investment in social programs has contributed to improvements.
The Mexico Institute seeks to improve understanding, communication, and cooperation between Mexico and the United States by promoting original research, encouraging public discussion, and proposing policy options for enhancing the bilateral relationship. A binational Advisory Board, chaired by Luis Téllez and Earl Anthony Wayne, oversees the work of the Mexico Institute. Read more
