| | |  News Around the Republic of Mexico | April 2009 
Some Note the Absence of Calderón
 Malcolm Beith - The News
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| | It's no surprise Calderón's large-scale absence this week has some questioning his methods. | |
Even as the World Health Organization praised Mexico for the way it has dealt with the H1N1 outbreak, the media, politicians and citizens here continue to question the government's handling of the whole affair.
WHO Director Dr. Margaret Chan said Wednesday that Mexico had shown "openness and transparency" in its communication with foreign governments - not to mention the WHO - regarding the flu virus from the outset.
But a cartoon in El Universal on Wednesday echoed the sentiments of some pundits and people here: "Where is the captain?" read the caption for the drawing depicting a sinking ship.
An e-mail making the rounds revealed doctors from Israel, Russia and Germany touting ludicrous methods they had concocted to combat swine flu. The Mexican doctor replied: "You've got nothing on us, you're way behind! We grabbed a person without a brain, without a heart and without balls - and made him president."
President Felipe Calderón has largely been absent during the crisis so far, not having made a television appearance since he was in Oaxaca on Saturday. He has left the handling of the flu news to Health Secretary José Angel Córdova, who has been verbally pummeled by reporters daily.
Such a strategy is not the norm even for the reserved Calderón, who on many occasions has taken a front seat during his presidency. He has controversially donned a military uniform to boost the drug war and regularly visited some of the most hard-hit areas of the country. He has also attended public funerals of soldiers killed by drug traffickers.
During the floods in Tabasco and Chiapas in late 2007, Calderón made repeated visits to the region.
On Nov. 4, his long-time friend and interior secretary, Juan Camilo Mouriño, died in a plane crash and Calderón very publicly pledged thorough investigations - for which his transportation secretary was taking much media heat.
It's no surprise Calderón's large-scale absence this week has some questioning his methods. "The Mexican government's initial reaction to the outbreak of swine flu does not inspire confidence," wrote John Ackerman, a law professor at Mexico City's UNAM, in a column. Some citizens, like retired forensic scientist Guillermo Gandara, have been less critical. "The health secretary should be the one dealing with it," he said. "That's what functionaries are for."
Analysts also say Calderón's handling of the outbreak has sat well with Washington - whose support is crucial for his ongoing war on drugs.
"He is perceived as managing the crisis well - not grandstanding, but working effectively behind the scenes while allowing Health Secretary Córdova to take the lead on medical questions," said George W. Grayson of the College of William & Mary. |
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