A controversy has erupted in Mexico over a video showing a collaborator cleaning the shoes of the president of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN), Hugo Aguilar Ortiz. The footage, which quickly went viral on social media, has reignited the debate on privileges and austerity in the Mexican judiciary. The incident occurred during preparations for an event commemorating the 1917 Constitution anniversary at the Theater of the Republic in Querétaro. The video shows the magistrate standing while a woman, later identified as Amanda Pérez, the tribunal's Director of Social Communication, kneels to clean the official's footwear. Aguilar Ortiz explained the incident as an accident. 'To my colleague, the Director of Social Communication, coffee and cream spilled. I still offer my apologies and reiterate my respect. As soon as I noticed, I asked her not to continue,' he wrote on his X account. Mexico's President, Claudia Sheinbaum, found Aguilar Ortiz's explanation 'laudable' but urged public officials to 'maintain an attitude of humility.'
