The usually reclusive Mexican Business Council, comprised of Mexico's most powerful and richest magnates, has invited Mexico's Presidential candidates for separate behind-closed-doors talks ahead of the July 1 presidential elections, the group announced Sunday in a statement sent to the Mexican media.
"In the context of the electoral process, the Mexican Business Council has scheduled dialogues with the four Presidential candidates. In addition to listening to their proposals and government visions, Council members will express their concerns and ideas for government in order to hold #DialoguesForMexico conversations," the group said.
Our goal, the Mexican Business Council explained, is to foster democracy and job-creating economic development that would result in a "fairer, more secure and inclusive" Mexico.
Presidential candidates Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Ricardo Anaya, José Antonio Meade, and Jaime Rodriguez, are expected to attend the private meetings that are to take place this week. López Obrador said he will meet with the Council on Tuesday. With less than four weeks before the election, López Obrador has twice the support of second-place Anaya in Bloomberg’s Poll Tracker. Meade, the ruling PRI party candidate, trails in third place, with independent candidate Rodriguez in fourth place, with low single digit support.
Although all four candidates were invited, all eyes are on López Obrador. The country's business community has been uneasy with many of López Obrador's economic proposals and confrontational style. Last month, Alejandro Ramírez, president of the Mexican Business Council, accused López Obrador, who holds a more than 50 percent lead in almost all polls, of "insulting and slandering" businessmen "who do not share his ideas" and "resorting to personal attacks and unfounded accusations."
Last week, billionaires German Larrea and Alberto Bailleres, warned their employees of the risk of a “populist” winning the July 1 presidential election and asked them to thinks twice before voting for him.
The Council's call for dialogue departs from the war of words of the past days. Their willingness to reduce tensions had a receptive ear in López Obrador who also signaled his desire to find common grounds. "Businessmen will have no problem in our administration, they will be respected, we will seek convergences among the public, private and social sectors. There will be a mixed economy," López Obrador said Sunday while campaigning in the State of Mexico.
The Mexican Business Council does not publish the names of its members. But business sources with inside knowledge describe it as an exclusive list of no more then fifteen tycoons. The list includes most of Mexico's billionaires: telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helú; mining tycoon German Larrea; mining and retail businessman Alberto Bailleres; tequila maker Juan Francisco Beckman; TV mogul Emilio Azcarraga Jean; CEO of Coca-Cola giant FEMSA, José Antonio Fernandez; CEO of bakery empire Grupo Bimbo, Daniel Servitje; and chemical magnate Antonio del Valle. They are all expected to participate in the meetings with the candidates.
Source: Forbes
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