Mauricio Fernández Garza - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Mauricio Fernández Garza (b. April 2, 1950 in Monterrey

Monterrey

Monterrey , is the capital city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León in the country of Mexico. The city is anchor to the third-largest metropolitan area in Mexico and is ranked as the ninth-largest city in the nation. Monterrey serves as a commercial center in the north of the country and is the...

) is a Mexican

Mexican people

Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....

politician and businessman directly related to the Fernández Ruiloba wealthy and prominent family; owners of PYOSA

PYOSA

PYOSA is a Mexican multi-national industrial family-owned group Founded by Rafael Fernández Saldana and his sons Alberto Fernández Ruiloba and lately participating Rafael and Jorge Fernández Ruiloba, fully based on the chemical industry...

(Pigmentos Y Oxidos SA). He is currently mayor of San Pedro Garza García

San Pedro Garza García

San Pedro Garza García is a city-municipality of the Mexican state of Nuevo León and is part of Monterrey's Metropolitan Area, based on the suburban North American model...

, former senator

Senate of Mexico

The Senate of the Republic, constitutionally Chamber of Senators of the Honorable Congress of the Union After a series of reforms during the 1990s, it is now made up of 128 senators:...

and current member of the board of Grupo Alfa, a Monterrey

Monterrey

-based chemical, food and auto-parts producer. He is well known for his art contribution to Nuevo León

Nuevo León

Nuevo León It is located in Northeastern Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Tamaulipas to the north and east, San Luis Potosí to the south, and Coahuila to the west. To the north, Nuevo León has a 15 kilometer stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to the U.S...

.

Fernández Garza graduated with a bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University

Purdue University

Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...

(U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

), specialized in economics at the Autonomous University of Nuevo León and received a master's degree in business administration from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Studies.

He is the founder and president of Comercializadora de Puros, Uniser (Havana

Havana

Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...

, Cuba

Cuba

The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...

), Artesanarte and the Museo del Ojo in García, Nuevo León

García, Nuevo León

García is a municipality located to the northwest of the Monterrey metropolitan area in the state of Nuevo León, Mexico. García had, according to the 2005 census, a population of 51,658 persons...

. In June 2005 he sold one of his companies, Especialidades Cerveceras, S.A. (the makers of premium beer Casta) to Fomento Económico Mexicano (FEMSA), world's second-largest Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...

bottler. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=asgSk9lXW3e4&refer=latin_america

Fernández ran for governor of Nuevo León

Governor of Nuevo León

The Mexican state of Nuevo León has been governed by more than a hundred individuals in its history, who have had various titles and degrees of responsibility depending on the prevailing political regime of the time....

in 2003. He defeated former treasurer Fernando Elizondo in the National Action Party

National Action Party (Mexico)

The National Action Party , is one of the three main political parties in Mexico. The party's political platform is generally considered Centre-Right in the Mexican political spectrum. Since 2000, the President of Mexico has been a member of this party; both houses have PAN pluralities, but the...

state primaries (56.5% vs. 20.8%) but lost the gubernatorial election against the candidate of the Institutional Revolutionary Party

Institutional Revolutionary Party

The Institutional Revolutionary Party is a Mexican political party that held power in the country—under a succession of names—for more than 70 years. The PRI is a member of the Socialist International, as is the rival Party of the Democratic Revolution , making Mexico one of the few...

, Natividad González Parás

Natividad González Parás

José Natividad González Parás is a Mexican politician affiliated to the Institutional Revolutionary Party. He is a former federal deputy and former governor of Nuevo León He is also married to Cristina Maiz...

.

He ran for mayor of San Pedro Garza Garcia in 2009 and won the election. His administration began on October 31 of 2009.

Public Safety

During his campaign, Mauricio focused on promoting his anti-crime policies, as the growing crime wave was of concern for many citizens of San Pedro, the wealthiest municipality/city in Mexico. During his campaign, he stated that the city was controlled by the Beltran Leyva drug cartel - these statements caused much controversy. He also mentioned that the relative peace seen in the city was due to Beltran family members living in the city, and their pacts with other cartels to keep San Pedro a "safe zone".

During his commencement speech, he mentioned that the man who issued him a death threat had been killed in Mexico City. This was done before the body was found by the authorities.

One of his main strategies against the rising crime rate was the implementation of an "intelligence" body, which operated in secrecy and was financed by the city's wealthy businessmen. The mayor himself called the group "El Grupo Rudo," which translated from spanish to "The Rough Group." This group created much controversy, as many thought this group operated illegally. The leader of this group was accused of torture by one of Mauricio's bodyguards, and was later killed by a member of an organized group. The son of the ex-governor Alfonso Martinez Dominguez, Fransico Martinez Cardenas, was in charge of collecting the money from the businessmen. The group was soon disintegrated, however many claim it still operates covertly.

In an effort to reduce the increase in kidnappings and delinquency, he formalized a database that kept track of all domestic servant employees. The goal was to keep track of all of these employees, which number the thousands and work in the wealthy family's homes. One of the arguments in favor of such a database was that many of the kidnappings and robberies occurred because of tips given by the employees. Many human right groups rose in protest.

Public Safety

See also