Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Photo: Google

By THE PULSE NEWS MEXICO STAFF

The massive public party in the capital’s main plaza Zócalo on Wednesday, Dec. 1, to commemorate Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) third year in office attracted more than 250,000 jubilant, mostly unmasked revelers, and offered up little in the way of new rhetoric from the president.

The giant forget-any-semblance-of-social-distancing fiesta, which was open to anyone who cared to attend and which was held as most of the rest of the world is beefing up measures to prevent the spread of the little-understood, but apparently highly contagious omicron variant of covid-19, served as yet another forum for AMLO to regurgitate the same messages he has been spouting for the last 36 months.

In what also served as the stage for his 12th State of the Nation Address (he presents one every three months, while previous Mexican presidents have offered theirs annually), AMLO said that the country’s economy and social were “solid,” this despite a rise in covid cases, spiraling inflation and three consecutive years of economic contractions.

The president attributed his government’s “success” to his administration’s “commitment to the poor.”

“Caring for the poorest is to play it safe and to have the support of millions when trying to transform a reality of oppression and achieve an ideal of a better society,” AMLO said in his familiar self-engrandizing style, followed by a barrage of insults for his opponents.

“Nothing good can come, on the other hand, from corrupt politicians, from a paid-off press, from conniving intellectuals and from potentates dominated by greed.”

During the event — which some critics dubbed a “covid fest” since it is likely to produce an even higher spike in coronavirus cases in days to come — AMLO also made reference to his 2022 revocation of mandate referendum, which he said would no doubt reaffirm the Mexican people’s love for him and his government.

He likewise called on Mexico’s Congress to ratify his controversial electricity bill next year and praised the military, to whom he has granted almost unlimited powers.