Jalisco Attorney General Luis Carlos Nájera and Víctor Manuel Mijangos Castellanos, the state’s director of Tourist Destination Planning and Development offered some refreshing personal insights on their government jobs in back-to-back slots as guest speakers for the March 12 meeting of the Canadian Club of Lake Chapala.
Mijangos’ talk focused on the diversity and appeal of the state’s principal tourist destinations. In response to a question about his personal favorite spots, he mentioned Puerto Vallarta, Lagos de Moreno, Mazamitla and Tequila, quipping, “my heart is like a condominium.”
Addressing a major concern among some listeners, he explained that airlines apparently do not see sufficient demand to justify scheduling direct flights between Guadalajara and major Canadian cities. He indicated that carriers would have to sell around one million seats per year for each plane they operate to turn a decent profit. However, he believes there is good potential for booking charter flights as a viable alternative for lakeside’s permanent and part-time Canadian residents.Nájera revealed the lighter side of his career in law enforcement and criminal justice through a couple of humorous anecdotes concerning experiences with Canadian colleagues.
“I have made a lot of friends in your country. I was always telling my partners there that I wanted a fur hat. They’d say, ‘You’re crazy.’ Finally I explained, ‘it’s the same as when you go to Mexico. You want to come back with a charro sombrero.’ So they went right out and got me one.”
On another occasion he was taken on a visit to parliament where he was given a chance to briefly sit at the prime minister’s desk. He recalled spying a prominently placed hot-line button and freaking out his police pals when he stuck out a finger in its direction as he asked deadpan, “What’s that for?”
On a more serious note, the attorney general spoke about valuable lessons learned in Canada that he aims to put into practice in Jalisco. One is the immense value of teamwork. Another is recruiting the very best candidates for law and order work, as exemplified by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
His vision for fighting criminal activity on the local and statewide front will be explained in greater depth in a follow-up article in next week’s Reporter.