MEXICO CITY, (Reuters) – Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto yesterday ordered an investigation of home purchases by himself, his wife and his finance minister from government contractors but he fell short of demands for an independent probe into possible corruption.
Pena Nieto named a former election official to head the Public Administration Ministry (SFP) and investigate whether he and Finance Minister Luis Videgaray had steered big government contracts toward businessmen who had sold them homes.
The post had been empty since Pena Nieto took office over two years ago, when he proposed replacing the SFP with a more independent anti-corruption body that has yet to take shape.
“I am conscious that these accusations have created the appearance of something improper, something that really did not happen,” Pena Nieto said.
However, the man named to lead the probe, Virgilio Andrade, said minutes after Pena Nieto’s announcement that he would only be looking into the contractors’ deals with the federal government rather than the house purchases, which began before the president took office.
Mexico’s government has struggled to mount convincing investigations of corruption allegations in the past.
A Reuters report last month detailed how investigators at state oil company Pemex, in probes managed by SFP officials, disregarded more than 200 cases in which congressional auditors recommended punishment for alleged contract irregularities.
