More resources for the bureaucracy of “national security”

The budget destined towards the “National Security” of Mexico is keeping up with its annual great increase. For the current year it will be raised in real terms by 10,42%, despite the announced cuts in other sectors of the Federal Administration, making up to 92,700 million pesos. Nonetheless more than 80% of these resources –almost 75 billion- will end up paying salaries, benefits and administrative spending, meanwhile about 19% -less than 18 billion- will be invested in equipment, infrastructure and modernization, as a study carried out by the Dirección de Servicios de Investigación y Análisis de la Cámara de Diputados (Research and Analysis Directorate of the Chamber of Deputies) reveals. The biggest raises in percentage are given to the Presidential General Staff and the Secretary of the Navy.

The federal government will spend a total amount of 92,762,810,000 pesos into national security in 2015, about 8,756,092,000 pesos more than last year, when 84,005,890,000 pesos were budgeted. Unlike any other sector the resources destined to “national security” grow year by year. In real terms the budget that will be spent in 2015 throughout the Presidency of the Republic and three of its ministries reflects a rise of 10,42% regarding 2014.

Up to 80,67% of the resources will be destined for current expenditures, i.e., personal, administrative and subsidiary services, and 19,33% in capital spending such as equipment and infrastructure, according to the document  El presupuesto público federal para la función seguridad nacional, 2014-2015 (The federal public budget for the purpose of national security, 2014-2015), drafted by the Bachelor in Economics and parliamentary researcher appointed to the Research and Analysis Directorate of the chamber of Deputies, Reyes Tépach.

The study concludes that “one of the main issues that face the spending on national security” is the disparity between the current expenditure and the capital spending. According to this analysis 74,829,010,000 pesos will be spent on salaries and benefits related with social security, office supplies and computer equipment, as well as social assistance and resources for the pension funds. Hardly 17,933,810,000 pesos are budgeted for the acquisitions of armament, mobile means of communication, technologies and the construction of infrastructure.

Thereby less than a fifth of the budget destined to “national security” is spent in “the modernization of the activities which make up its purpose”, according to the document.

This same analysis also concludes that “alike the former administration of ex-President Felipe Calderón, where the federal public expenditure for national security has been raised significantly, the new administration of President Enrique Peña Nieto is following the same tendency.”

These 92,762,810,000 pesos represent 0,51% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The expenditures on national security of last year were equivalent to 0,49% of the GDP.

Four dependencies of the federal government will be in charge of bringing to bear the funds for national security: the Presidency of the Republic, through the Presidential General Staff (as well as two more units responsible of the expenditures), with 1,149,190,000 pesos; Secretaria de Gobernación (Secretary of the Interior) through the Centro de Investigación y Seguridad Nacional (National Center for Research and Nacional Security, CISEN) with 7,616,130,000 pesos; Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (Secretary of National Defense, SEDENA) with 59,616,110,000 pesos, and the Secretaría de Marina (Secretary of the Navy, SEMAR) with 24,381,380,000 pesos.

The Presidential General Staff is a body at the direct service of the President of the Republic. It is made up by troops from the three permanent armed forces of Mexico: the Mexican Army, the Mexican Air Force and the Mexican Navy. Its substantial purpose is to warranty the security of the President and his family, of the heads of state and public servants that may visit the Mexican Republic, as well as of the former presidents of the Republic; in addition of other personalities, judged by the importance of their mission or position, specifically ordered by the head of the executive branch. Then also it is in charge of the security of the presidential premises. Additionally it is empowered to develop intelligence and counter-intelligence activities.

The CISEN is the body of Civil Intelligence of the Mexican State. It is a decentralized institution of the Secretary of the Interior. The purpose of the CISEN, in conformity with the official website, is “to generate the strategic, tactical and operational intelligence, that will allow (it) to secure the integrity, stability and the continuity of the Mexican State, (as well as )to offer support to governance and to strengthen the rule of law” (sic). It admits that “the role of the CISEN consists in warning and suggesting any measures of prevention, dissuasion, containment and neutralization of risks and threats, that may infringe the territory, the sovereignty, the constitutional order, the liberties and democratic institutions of the Mexican population, together with the economic, social and politic development of the country”.

The SEDENA is a state ministry in charge of organizing and administrating two of the permanent armed forces: the Mexican Army and Air Force. In agreement with the Organic Law of the Army and the Air Force, it formally fulfills five substantial purposes: to defend the integrity, the independence, the sovereignty of the Nation, to warrant the domestic Security, to assist civil population in case of public necessity, to realize civic and social works, which shall support the progress of the country; and in the event of a disaster, to provide assistance in order to maintain the order, help to the persons and their goods, along with the reconstruction of the affected area. The intelligence and counter-intelligence activities will be in charge of the second and seventh sections of the General Staff.

The third permanent armed force is the Mexican Navy, administered and organized by the SEMAR. Its mission is to “use the naval force of the Federation for the external defense and to contribute to the domestic Security of the country”. Thereto it performs intelligence and counter-intelligence activities, same as SEDENA. It relies on the Naval Intelligence Unit.

Further 23% for the Presidency

The report drafted by the researcher Reyes Tépach reveals that in real terms the Presidency of the Republic has been the entity that has seen the major increase in terms of national security in regard with their budget of last year: 23,01%. In 2014 it spent 934 million pesos, as in 2015 it will exercise 1,149,190,000 pesos, i.e. 214,099,000 pesos more.

The SEMAR carries on, starting from the last administration, with real increases above those of SEDENA. For the present year it will exercise 24,381,380,000 pesos opposed to 21,568,720,000 pesos of the last. The difference being of 2,812,660,000 pesos, which makes up an increase of 13,04%.

The real increment for SEDENA was of 10,47%, passing from 53,965,890,000 pesos in 2014 to 59,616,110,000 pesos in 2015, i.e. 5,650,220,000 pesos of increment.

According to the details of the amounts destined to the current expenditure and capital spending for each dependency shown in the study, the presidency of the republic will allocate 1,103,340,000 pesos to the current expenditures and 45,850,000 pesos in capital spending. The figures of the Secretary of the Interior are of 2,929,110,000 pesos and 4,687,002,000 pesos for the current expenditure and capital spending respectively. For SEDENA the figures are 51,747,001,000 and 7,869,100,000 pesos respectively. Finally for the SEMAR the figures are 19,049,550,000 pesos and 5,331,830,000 pesos.

The 1,149,190,000 pesos allocated to the Presidency in regard to national security will be distributed by two programs: 24,820,000 will be in charge of the Consejo de Seguridad Nacional (National Security Council, CSN) for performing the assessment, coordination, dissemination and support of the activities with regard to national security; and 1,124,370,000 pesos for the support of the activities related to security and logistics in order to ensure the integrity of the federal branch.

For its part the Secretary of the Interior will spend 7,616,130,000 pesos budgeted for national security in a single program, the Intelligence Services for National Security.

The SEDENA will apply for 59,616,110,000 pesos assigned for national security throughout eleven programs: for the defense of the integrity, the independence and the sovereignty over the national territory, 35,427,710,000 pesos; for the operations and development of the Mexican Air Force, 11,349,730,000 pesos; for activities of administrative support, 7,092,320,000 pesos; for maintenance and conservation of the military infrastructure, heavy machinery and real estate administration, 2,176,480,000 pesos; for the projects of governmental infrastructure of national security, 1,311,940,000 pesos; for the research, technological development, production and maintenance of armament, munitions, explosives, vehicles, military equipment and its accessories, 1,105,480,000 pesos; for the research, development and production of the uniform and military equipment and the maintenance of infrastructure, 1,009,740,000 pesos; for the health and animal production, 99,560,000 pesos; for the program for equality between men and women in SEDENA, 23,350,000; for the Trust Support for the relatives of deceased military servicemen or for servicemen having acquired a disability of first category on activities considered of high risk (sic), 18 million pesos and for the Program for External Radiologist Emergencies (PERE, sic), 1,810,000 pesos.

Meanwhile the SEMAR will apply for 24,380,380 pesos budgeted for national security via 10 programs: for the Employment of naval power of the federation to safeguard the sovereignty and national security, 15,226,150,000 pesos; for Acquisitions, reparations and maintenance of the operating units and naval establishments, 2,786,780,000 pesos; for administrative support activities, 1,306,910,000 pesos; for development and management of the naval policy and strategy, 1,251,970,000 pesos; for the naval construction for the substitution of ships of the Mexican Navy, 963,740,000 pesos; for the projects of social infrastructure of welfare and social security, 942,190,000 pesos; to develop the naval and informatics Communications, 880,970,000 pesos; for governmental infrastructure projects of national security, 842,260,000 pesos; for the security of navigation and protection of the marine environment, 178,710,000 pesos; for fees, support and contribution to international organizations, 700,000 pesos.

Three will be the units responsible to allocate these funds given by the Presidency of the Republic in regard to national security (1,149,190,000 pesos): the Presidential General Staff will get 624,005,000 pesos, the General Coordination of the Presidential Air Transportation, 500,320,000 pesos and the Secretaría Técnica del Consejo de Seguridad Nacional (Technical Secretariat of the National Security Council), 24,820,000 pesos.

The only entity entitled to exert the expenditure related with national security of the Secretary of the Interior, is the CISEN. Thereby through this dependency the 7,616,130,000 pesos budgeted for that purpose will be allocated.

The units responsible of spending those 59,616,110,000 pesos, which are provided to SEDENA for national security concerns, are 22: the Command Headquarters of the I military region, 13,705,140,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the Mexican Air Force, 11,349,730,000 pesos; the General Administration Directorate, 6,427,005,000 pesos; the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the National Defense, 3,575,230,000 pesos; the General Engineer Directorate, 3,488,420,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the VII military region 2,464,850,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the VI military region, 2,403,470,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the XII military region, 1,931,240,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the V military region, 1,903,170,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the II region, 1,828,670 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the VIII military region, 1,793,720,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the XI military region, 1,283,600,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the III military region, 1,209,330,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the IX military region, 1,160,730,000 pesos; the General Defense Industry Directorate, 1,105,040,000 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the IV region, 1,081,970 pesos; the Command Headquarters of the X military region, 1,050,160,000 pesos; the General Uniform and Equipment Factory Directorate, 1,009,740,000 pesos; the General Information Technology Directorate, 429,330,000 pesos; the General Directorate for Social Communication, 245,510,000 pesos; the General Health Directorate, 99,560,000 pesos and the General Management Directorate, 70,010,000 pesos.

As far as the SEMAR is concerned, there are 14 units responsible to allocate the 24,380,380,000 pesos for national security, the armed forces, regions, areas and naval sectors, 14,034,890,000 pesos; the General Directorate for Services, 4,362,320,000 pesos; the General Administration and Finances Directorate, 1,725,480,000 pesos; the General Staff of the Navy, 1,562,300,000 pesos; the General Naval Construction Directorate, 1,382,640,000 pesos; the Administrative Office, 520,530,000 pesos; the General Human Resources Directorate, 371,360,000 pesos; the General Research and Development Directorate, 149,820,000 pesos; the Secretariat, 127,690,000 pesos; the Comptroller General´s Office of the Navy, 61,470,000 pesos; the legal Unit, 31,460,000 pesos; the Under-Secretariat, 26,720,000 pesos; the Board of Admirals, 16,460,000 pesos and the Board of the Navy, 8,230,000 pesos.

Zósimo Camacho (Translated by: Axel Plasa)

 Contralínea 423 /  15 – 21 de Feb 2015