Mexican soldiers will get a pay raise after elimination of oversight agencies, president says

abcnews.go.com:

Mexico's president says much of the money gained by eliminating independent oversight and regulatory agencies will go to the army to fund a rise in soldiers’ pay

MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s president said Monday that much of the money gained by eliminating independent oversight and regulatory agencies will go to the army to fund a rise in soldiers’ pay.

The announcement by President Claudia Sheinbaum is the latest in a a series of new and unusual funding sources to pay for the country’s increasingly influential military.

Last week, Mexico’s Congress approved charging every cruise ship passenger a $42 immigration fee, with much of that money also going to the armed forces.

Under Sheinbaum's Morena party, since 2019 the military has been given powers to build and run everything from railways, airports and airlines in Mexico, and some of those projects appear to be losing money.

For over a century before, Mexico's armed forces were very limited in their actions, restricted from taking any role in politics and didn't have many business interests. But that all changed under Sheinbaum's predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who saw the army as a loyal, unquestioning ally and a safeguard for his political and policy legacy.

López Obrador, Sheinbaum's political mentor, also made the armed forces, and the quasi-military National Guard, the country's main law enforcement forces.

In late November, Mexico’s Senate voted to eliminate seven independent regulatory and oversight agencies, a move that critics warn will cement the ruling party’s power and avoid outside scrutiny.

Sheinbaum called it a money-saving measure, arguing that the government can more efficiently handle functions like freedom of information requests,