Attorney General Gertz resigns after nearly 7 scandal-filled years on the job

Mexico’s arguable lawyer general, Alejandro Gertz Manero, resigned connected Thursday and has been replaced connected an interim ground by President Claudia Sheinbaum’s ineligible adviser,  Ernestina Godoy.

In a Senate session, presiding officers work a missive by Gertz requesting that his resignation beryllium accepted aft Sheinbaum nominated him arsenic “Mexico’s ambassador to a affable country,” which was aboriginal revealed to beryllium Germany.

Ernestina Godoy Ramos, President Sheinbaum’s ineligible counsel who served arsenic her lawyer wide erstwhile she was politician of Mexico City, volition service arsenic the nation’s apical authoritative until the Senate chooses a replacement to capable retired the word of retired AG Alejandro Gertz. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro.com)

Gertz, who had served arsenic lawyer wide since January 2019, was appointed for a nine-year term, but his bureau has progressively travel nether scrutiny for leaks involving delicate lawsuit files and different missteps. He has besides faced accusations that helium utilized his presumption for idiosyncratic and governmental gain.

The Senate approved his resignation 74 to 22, with nary abstentions. 

Immediately aft the ballot to judge the resignation, the Senate established procedures to name Mexico’s caller apical authoritative and sent retired a telephone for applications.

Sheinbaum volition taxable 3 candidates to the Senate, which volition prime a successor via a two-thirds bulk vote.

Institutional Revolutionary Party Senator Manuel Añorve charged Sheinbaum and the ruling Morena enactment with poitical manipulation successful its handling of the Gertz situation: “This isn’t a resignation, it’s a powerfulness grab.” (@manuelanorve)

Godoy, who served arsenic Mexico City Attorney General erstwhile Sheinbaum was the politician of the capital, is considered the favourite to service retired the remainder of Gertz’s term.

Controversy successful the Senate

Opposition senators objected to Gertz’s removal, arguing that his resignation did not conscionable the presumption established successful Article 24 of the Constitution, which stipulates that the lawyer wide is lone permitted to resign for “serious cause.”

Movimiento Ciudadano enactment Senator Clemente Castañeda, among others, argued that accepting an ambassadorial information is not “a superior cause,” insisting that carnal and intelligence incapacity to proceed serving arsenic a prosecutor, having committed an administrative discourtesy oregon a crime, oregon violating the Constitution were acceptable reasons to abdicate the office.

Institutional Revolutionary Party Senator Manuel Añorve charged Sheinbaum and the ruling Morena enactment with nefarious politics. 

“This isn’t a resignation, it’s a powerfulness grab,” helium said. “What we’re seeing is simply a authoritative resigning to marque mode for a puppet prosecutor.”

Morena senators insisted that the resignation did comply with Article 24, claiming that Gertz had violated the Constitution by failing to taxable reports helium is obligated to supply to Congress.

Morena Senator Adán Augusto López came up with the absorbing reflection that Gertz’s resdignation itself constituted the required “serious cause” to warrant a resignation: “If idiosyncratic holds a presumption of work and says ‘I americium retiring,’ that rises to the level of ‘a superior cause,’ due to the fact that helium is fundamentally abandoning his post.” (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro.com)

However, absorption senators said they were not privy to the resignation missive nor were they permitted to reappraisal the papers sent to President Sheinbaum by Senate enactment connected Wednesday advising her of the upcoming vote.

Afterward, Morena’s caucus person successful the Senate, Adán Augusto López, dismissed the accusations that helium had orchestrated Gertz’s ouster, saying “media outlets were letting their imaginations tally wild.”  

López did not code the claims that Gertz had violated the Constitution, alternatively saying the resignation missive itself was crushed capable to judge his departure.

“If idiosyncratic holds a presumption of work and says ‘I americium retiring,’ that rises to the level of ‘a superior cause,’ due to the fact that helium is fundamentally abandoning his post,” López said.

Gertz’s past controversies

The resignation of the 86-year-old Gertz had been the taxable of speculation amid what the quality bureau Reuters called, “scrutiny of Sheinbaum’s authorities implicit information issues,” particularly arsenic rumors astir Mexico’s World Cup hosting duties made headlines.

Critics besides argued that Gertz utilized his tremendous power to settee idiosyncratic vendettas and support alleged concern interests.

Earlier this week, El Universal columnist Mario Maldonado attributed the effort to oust Gertz to repeated leaks of delicate files that implicated former high-ranking authorities officials and members of the Navy arsenic good arsenic members of erstwhile President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s interior circle.

In 2022, Gertz was heavy criticized for trumping up charges against his in-laws who languished successful situation for astir 22 months. The Supreme Court bluntly rebuked the lawyer general portion ruling his efforts unconstitutional.

He besides tried to fastener up 31 academics connected charges they improperly received astir US $2.5 cardinal successful authorities subject funding. The laws astatine the clip allowed specified funding, and the wealth was determined to person been spent properly. Gertz allegedly sought to jailhouse the academics due to the fact that they had declined to o.k. his petition for ceremonial designation arsenic a starring academic.

Gertz besides came nether dense occurrence for summarily clearing erstwhile Defense Minister Salvador Cienfuegos of cause charges aft helium had been arrested successful Los Angeles successful 2020, claiming U.S. authorities had nary evidence. Mexico past drew the ire of the U.S. authorities by releasing the full lawsuit file successful usurpation of a bilateral treaty.

With reports from Reforma, La Jornada, El Universal, Reuters, The Associated Press, El País and Infobae