Mexico’s president on Monday threw himself into areas badly hit by last week’s devastating earthquake amid frustration at delays in getting food and water to stricken communities where at least 96 people died and 2.5 million were left in need of aid, Reuters reported.
Accompanied by several cabinet ministers, President Enrique Pena Nieto took on a busy schedule as he toured the battered southern state of Chiapas, seeking to inspire confidence in the government’s relief effort.
Pena Nieto’s approval ratings have plumbed depths lower than any recent president, and his Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) faces a major struggle to retain power in presidential elections next July. The law bars him from seeking re-election.
Speaking in the hard-hit city of Tonala, Pena Nieto urged construction companies to aid rebuilding efforts.
“If construction firms commit to showing solidarity by building a few homes ... construction efforts can be carried out quicker,” he said. “Don’t let anyone take advantage of you, or take control of your affairs. The government is here.”
Mexican cement producer Cemex said on Monday it would donate $1 million worth of aid to reconstruction efforts. The final cost of the quake is likely to be far higher.
Among those with Pena Nieto were Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong and Finance Minister Jose Antonio Meade, both potential PRI candidates for the presidency.
The quake killed at least sixteen people in Chiapas and four others in Tabasco. The vast majority of deaths so far reported were the 76 in neighboring Oaxaca state.
Many Oaxaca fatalities were in the town of Juchitan, where more than 5,000 homes were destroyed. Tens of thousands of others were damaged in the region.
Government officials delivered bags of simple rations including water and canned food on Sunday, but many Juchitan residents complained about the slow pace of assistance.