Lower the budget to the INE!

In another twist of the nut, it could be deduced that in the highest spheres the institutional mission of the INE is valued little…

The main note in the edition of El Economista last Monday read: “INE, the body most punished with reallocations in the budget.” The news must be important because it was on the front page of most, if not all, of the newspapers with national circulation.

Economists know that fiscal resources are always inexorably scarce and that fact, very harsh, could explain the austerity efforts at the time of defining the public expenditure budget for the following year. However, the thesis of strict austerity is difficult to sustain when the issue of the budget is reviewed from a panoramic view. And the fact is that this panoramic vision reveals that there is a draconian austerity for some entities, for example, the INE (National Electoral Institute), and for others a remarkable largesse, which borders on suspicious generosity. So the most the current administration reaches is the judgment of selective budget austerity. For some, a very hard hand, and for others very soft.

Having raised the issue of selective austerity, it is worth sharing some conjectures about the reasons that could motivate the authority to apply such a heavy budget hand to the INE. I read in some journalistic notes that in government circles the INE is thought to be a “very expensive” entity. But “very expensive”, with respect to what or which other? The truth is that there is no rational reference to substantiate that accusation.

I decide to touch base with a friend who is a specialist in political science and he explains to me: one of the reasons for the heavy hand is that the INE officials took refuge en masse against politics to reduce the salaries of public servants and that behavior aroused a lot of annoyance. in the highest authorities of the country. But if that is the case, for the benefit of information transparency, the animosity should be articulated in another language: INE officials have too high salaries!

In another twist of the nut, it could be deduced that the institutional mission of the INE is valued little in the upper echelons: to give credibility and trust on the part of the national community to the electoral processes carried out by that body. From that perspective, the matter appears gloomy and so it must be consigned. But with that perspective, the issue no longer has anything to do with budget problems.

bdonatello@eleconomista.com.mx