This week, Deputy Alfonso Ramírez Cuéllar presented to the working group for drafting opinions of the Constitutional Affairs Commission a reform initiative to eliminate the fuero (official immunity). The central objective of this proposal, explained the MORENA party member, is 'to eradicate privileges, combat impunity, and guarantee that no public servant is above the law, without undermining freedom of expression or the legislative function.' The federal deputy from MORENA recalled that in 2019, at the initiative of then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, the Constitution was reformed to remove the fuero from the head of the federal executive branch and expand the grounds for which they can be prosecuted, incorporating crimes of corruption, electoral offenses, and any other illicit act applicable to the general citizenry. 'That was a clear example of placing oneself on the same level as any citizen before the law,' Ramírez Cuéllar emphasized. He further explained that the initiative draws on successful experiences from entities such as Mexico City, Jalisco, and Puebla, where progress has been made in the suppression of the fuero. However, officials from the Political Coordination Board of San Lázaro revealed to this news outlet, on condition of strict anonymity, that complaints have been received from various state governments through their legislators against the proposal. The governors, including some from the 'Fourth Transformation' movement, claim that it puts them in an 'unnecessary legal vulnerability.' Heading towards the 2027 state successions, these complaints have come from Sinaloa, Baja California, and Guerrero, as well as from Chihuahua, Tamaulipas, and Veracruz. Basically, the MORENA party member from the 'Puros y Duros' faction asserts that criminals use the fuero as a shield. The proposal outlines reforms to Articles 61, 111, 116, and 122 of the Constitution, with key changes including expanding in Article 108 the catalog of public servants who can be charged and prosecuted during their tenure, including deputies, senators, governors, and local deputies, for the same crimes as any citizen. It eliminates the need for a declaration of admissibility (a desafuero trial, as it is popularly known), and insists that being subject to a process does not equate to guilt, but rather allows for accusations to be resolved before prosecutors and courts. 'The initiative does not weaken Congress or local governments; rather, it legitimizes them,' Ramírez Cuéllar assured. In response, Ramírez Cuéllar justifies the elimination of the fuero with the argument of 'homologating criteria at the constitutional level and returning to this figure its original sense: parliamentary immunity to protect opinion and the vote, not as a shield against justice.'
