Rocha Moya has ceased to be functional after being accused of protecting Los Chapitos, an allegation he denies, although intelligence reports that the federal government has had since last year link him not only to them but also to Zambada, as confirmed by the head of the Sinaloa Cartel himself in August when he made a statement about his capture public. The political protection given to the governor by Monreal and Gutiérrez Luna does not extend to other areas. Legislators from Morena and those within the regime, who embrace him warmly, also need to realize that what they are doing is creating a bubble of impunity that, when it breaks, because it will happen, will also shatter their words and actions, having bet on a politician who stinks and who could end up in prison in Mexico or the United States.
What is nonexistent is the state government. Sinaloa lives in anomie. However, the most important thing to consider is that if Sheinbaum decided to seek one of these alternatives, her departure from the government would be the best option at this moment. In the state landscape, there seems to be no one who can replace Rocha Moya, not for lack of capacity, but for the doubt that the chosen person might provoke about their ability to fill the political vacuum that would be created.
In Mazatlán, they achieved 24-hour life in the port, because in the face of violence, municipal authorities asked their citizens to take refuge and not go out into the street because, it was implied, they could not protect them. Mazatlán is the second theater of operations that opens against the sons of Joaquín el Chapo Guzmán, who, wanting to take advantage of the capture of Ismael el Mayo Zambada, head of the Sinaloa Cartel, sought to take over the organization.
Some are anecdotal, like those said recently by the leaders of Morena in the Chamber of Deputies, who welcomed the governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, accused of being linked to the Sinaloa Cartel and identified as a probable criminal in federal investigations, with transports and open arms. Ricardo Monreal, coordinator of the ruling party in San Lázaro, described him as a “humanist man” and an “exceptional politician” who is a “model family man.”
Stabilizing the state is required before thinking about replacing Rocha Moya. In the case of Rocha Moya, however, escaping the hole he is in will be impossible. In more than a month and a half, news coming from Culiacán is like war reports: dead, injured, confrontations, executions, kidnappings, impacts on society.
The Senate could also intervene through the separation of powers, but not only would it be forced to justify that public powers have disappeared—practically they have not disappeared—but its political accomplice, Adán Augusto López, coordinator of Morena in that chamber, would block it. López Obrador, who was aware of their unspeakable relationships and found him functional, sheltered and protected him. There is no institutional presence that deters criminals, and the lack of political leadership from Governor Moya to accompany what he does not have, the strength to face violence, has ended up erasing norms.
The “exceptional politician” has been an absent figure in the war being fought in Culiacán for almost two months as a consequence of the fracture and implosion of the Sinaloa Cartel, which for 45 days focused on the capital and its outskirts, and this weekend extended to Mazatlán. In Culiacán, criminals have imposed a virtual curfew of 12 hours each day, making the center of the capital a ghost town in the afternoon and night, severely hurting the local economy.
In that plaza controlled for years by the Guzmán López, they faced the onslaught of Los Cabrera, who are part of the Sinaloa Cartel loyal to Zambada. Los Cabrera have powerful groups and are, as part of Zambada's organization, confronting the Jalisco New Generation Cartel in Durango and Zacatecas. The governor only makes his presence known through statements. The immorality of the morenos in San Lázaro knows no bounds.
The “humanist man” supported the cover-up and alteration of evidence regarding the murder of a political enemy, and one of the sons of the “model family man” is allegedly linked to drug trafficking. He has plenty of saliva, and has added the type of rhetorical aggression that oozed from his protector, former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who fled forward to escape his crises.
He involved the then president-elect, Claudia Sheinbaum, who since the beginning of her government has been distancing herself from the governor. Soldiers have started confronting criminals, but for it to be effective, it needs to be a sustained strategy, which will take time. The governor is a zombie, for practical purposes, which may be functional for him to keep receiving all the blows and wearing down without regard for his salvation, because he is a burnt fuse.
Sinaloa can be governed temporarily from Mexico City, with greater cabinet presence in the state to address issues of governability and economic reactivation. The federal government has deployed hundreds of soldiers to contain through deterrence, but it has not been enough. However, it cannot go much further. From various fronts in the country, calls for his dismissal have been made, for which there is a legal process, the process of impeachment in the local Congress.
In both cases, these are significant words that over time will find their place for those who pronounced them to be judged, in due time and form. Some for their heroism and others for their infamy. Rocha Moya's life has been in danger for almost three months, since Zambada exposed him. Sergio Gutiérrez Luna, president of the Chamber of Deputies, added that he was “doing a good job,” that they believed what he told them, and trusted him. There are phrases that will go down in history.
