Don't back down: Sheinbaum rejects Zedillo's challenge to audit 4T projects

During a conference in Madrid, former President Ernesto Zedillo issued a challenge to the 4T. He proposed that the emblematic works of Andrés Manuel López Obrador's administration—such as the Maya Train, the Dos Bocas Refinery, and the AIFA—be audited by an independent international body.

His proposal is to evaluate whether the investment in these works has been efficient, or if, on the contrary, they are a financial burden for the country without economic return.

"If there is transparency, let an independent audit be conducted," said the former president. This was in reference to the multiple allegations of cost overruns, delays, and poor results of these works.

Sheinbaum's response: diversion and omission

President Claudia Sheinbaum rejected the proposal and replied, instead, with a reference to the past. In it, she assured that she will present a report from the Federal Audit Office on Fobaproa, a financial program that emerged during Zedillo's administration.

The president avoided talking about current audits or an external evaluation of the Fourth Transformation's megaprojects.

Her response was interpreted by various analysts as a political maneuver to avoid accountability and divert focus to an issue from more than two decades ago.

Million-dollar cost overruns and low productivity

Zedillo's concern is not minor. The figures support his concern. The original cost of the Maya Train was 197 billion pesos, but it has skyrocketed to more than 500 billion.

The Dos Bocas Refinery, budgeted at 211 billion, already exceeds 398 billion. And the Felipe Ángeles International Airport, projected at 96 billion, ended up costing more than double: 235 billion.

Besides the cost overrun, the works still do not show economic benefits proportional to the investment. For example, the AIFA operates with a fraction of the expected air traffic, the refinery still doesn't produce what was promised, and the Maya Train has connectivity issues, environmental impact, and low demand.

Call for transparency

The current government's refusal to accept an external technical review raises doubts about the management of public resources. Additionally, it puts the effectiveness of the projects that have consumed a good part of the national budget in uncertainty.

Zedillo, from a technical perspective, has put a debate on the table that urgently needs to be opened. Meanwhile, the government still has time to opt for transparency. Rejecting it not only fuels distrust: it also projects opacity.