Jalisco’s state congress saved Chapala Mayor Joaquin Huerta from a two-week suspension from his duties, voting last week to reject a judicial ruling to that effect handed down earlier this year.
The matter revolves around a labor suit filed against the municipal government in February 2010 by Ignacio Valdovinos Anaya, former director of the city’s Catastro land tax office. After the Arbitration and Wage Scale Tribunal ruled in favor of his claim in August 2011, the city was ordered to pay him back wages and benefits, plus severance for unjustified dismissal.
Hermenegildo Ortega, director of Chapala’s legal department, appeared before a joint session of the two committees on June 20. He argued that the city is mired in a financial crisis, presenting documentation to demonstrate that the treasury is essentially empty.
Days later the committees determined that suspension is an inadmissible measure under those circumstances. Considering a joint recommendation in that tenor, the full body of congress coincided in letting the mayor off the hook, at least for the time being.
The Chapala government has another 25 unpaid legal settlements left hanging over its head by previous administrations, as well as a number of other pending labor cases that are still going through court channels.