Basura acumulada tras el servicio irregular en algunos de los locales de Piedra Barrenada. Foto: Cortesía.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía.- Irregular y sin frecuencia, es como la asociación civil, Prestadora de Servicios de Piedra Barrenada A.C., calificó el servicio de recolección de basura. Según los restauranteros, fue a partir de negarse a pagar entre mil 500 y dos mil pesos, que el servicio comenzó con deficiencias.
Durante una reunión realizada el 31 de mayo, integrantes de la asociación conformada por al menos 12 de los restauranteros, se dijeron inconformes con el presunto cobro que dicen les planteó el Gobierno de Jocotepec hace aproximadamente un mes.
Luego de la negación, los restauranteros denunciaron que el servicio de recolección de basura comenzó a transitar de manera irregular y cada vez menos frecuente, provocando la acumulación de basura en sus negocios.
Entre lo comentado, algunos restauranteros manifestaron que el cobro que se pretendía realizar era injusto, ya que el servicio de recolección de basura es el único apoyo que reciben del municipio, mientras que se dicen estar al corriente con el pago de sus impuestos.
“Nosotros pagamos todos nuestros impuestos puntualmente, que la licencia, cada vez más cara, que el predial, haciendo todo y qué beneficio o apoyo estamos recibiendo, esto era lo único en lo que nos apoyaba el Ayuntamiento”, dijo uno de los restauranteros durante la reunión, que pidió el anonimato para “evitar problemas”.
Respecto al monto que les habían propuesto, algunos consideraron el cobro parejo como injusto, argumentando que algunos restaurantes generan mucha más basura que otros. Pese a las inconformidades y la negación del pago mensual propuesto, los integrantes de la asociación aseguraron estar dispuestos a acceder a pagar lo que consideran “una aportación justa”, de acuerdo al metro cúbico de basura que generan.
Al final, los comerciantes coincidieron en que se debe buscar una solución al tema de la basura, mostrándose preocupados por las deficiencias que últimamente ha tenido el servicio de recolección, dando mala imagen a un punto clave del turismo en la ribera de Chapala y una de las zonas restauranteras más conocidas de Jalisco.
In Querétaro, the local Congress approved the privatization of potable water services.
By: Abigail A. Correa Cisneros
Drought stalks the whole country. Climate change is wreaking havoc in various parts of México, whether due to floods, fires or drought. In the midst of this situation, the people of Querétaro are now facing the privatization of water, after the approval of a law that grants concessions to private companies.
What several civil organizations have been warning about for weeks has become a reality in the Querétaro Congress. The majority of PAN congressmen approved the privatization of the drinking water service through operators who will be in charge of granting and charging citizens for the distribution, drainage and hydraulic works in the 18 municipalities of the state.
This is not bad, as long as a quality service is offered and the companies do not take advantage of the population’s need. In several parts of the country this is a reality; but corruption has allowed the plundering of aquifers under individual interests.
Querétaro has 26 dams that are already in a critical state, below 50 percent of their capacity. There is also an alert for the death of animals. A few days ago, the president of the Regional Livestock Union of Querétaro (UGRQ), Alejandro Ugalde Tinoco, stated that in the Querétaro Sierra the first four animal deaths were registered due to lack of water; therefore, he warned that if water is not available, the same could happen in San Juan del Río and the other municipalities.
The National Water Commission (Conagua) reports that 39 percent of the state’s surface area is in abnormally dry conditions, 29.9 percent in moderate drought and 31.1 percent in severe drought.
The purpose of this new law is to regulate the provision of public drinking water, drinking water treatment, drainage, sewerage, sanitation, wastewater treatment and disposal services in the state, including the recirculation and reuse of water, and mechanisms for its distribution and transportation.
Civil organizations have said that the approval did not contemplate important aspects for the regulation of water, such as its relationship with the ecological support of life, the rural context and climate change. In addition, its approval was made with inconsistencies and in a very early manner, according to the PRI deputy, Paul Ospital.
The mismanagement of this law exposes the population of Jaalisco to shortages because on other occasions these concessions are granted to private companies that use them for large real estate developments, excluding those who have the least.
IN OTHER NEWS
In the framework of World Bee Day, the General Coordination of Livestock of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development highlighted that, at the close of 2021, México produced 63,400 tons of honey, which was an increase of 17 percent compared to the 54,200 tons registered a year ago, which keeps national beekeeping in the first places of the livestock subsector, due to its economic and social importance. The commercial exploitation of bees takes place mainly in the southeast of the country, in entities such as Yucatán, Campeche, Quintana Roo and Chiapas. There are currently around 43,000 beekeepers nationwide, registered in 508 specialized livestock associations, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The economic income generated by this activity benefits one of the most unprotected rural sectors, favors the development of related industries and generates temporary jobs during the honey harvest season.
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
The body was collected by forensic medical service.
Laguna Staff.- While walking on the bicycle path of the Chapala-Jocotepec highway, a man fell to the ground after suffering a heart attack. The man, an expat, was helped by people who saw him fall including a private security guard who assisted him with CPR. Unfortunately, even with an immediate response, nothing could be done to save his life. He died on May 23rd, at about 11:15 a.m. at the corner of Aquiles Serdán, just west of central Ajijic.
Translated by Amy Esperanto
Town ID letters’ initial location was at the traffic light on North Cardenal Street and the Chapala-Jocotepec highway. Photo: File.
Alma Serrano (San Juan Cosalá).- The Mexican town ID letters of San Juan Cosalá will be relocated by the City Hall of Jocotepec to the small square in the neighborhood of Fátima, on the Chapala-Jocotepec highway. The identity signage was initially placed on Cardenal Street in September 2018.
Last May 8, personnel of the municipal government began gathering support to move the colorful letters to the small plaza on Zaragoza Street, at the crossroads of the village.
The delegate of San Juan Cosalá, Carlos Vázquez Reyes, said that the change in the location of the letters was made at the direction of the Department of Urban Image of the municipality of Jocotepec.
«The Department of Urban Image says that this small square looks very lonely,” he commented, “and the reason for placing them [the letters] there is to encourage people to visit the neighborhood of Fátima and to make the square look nicer.”
The huge decorated letters spelling out the town’s name are part of a nationwide government initiative promoting Mexican tourism. As such, their design captures characteristic aspects of the town such as its main square, the parish, the views towards Lake Chapala and the impressive landscape of the San Juan Cosalá mountain range.
Translated by Mags Petela
Vaccination module for children under nine, installed on Jocotepec’s main square was part of the health fair. Credit: Héctor Ruiz.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía (Jocotepec).- As part of the First National Health Day (JNSP) 2022, Jocotepec held several health fairs. They began in Jalisco on May 16th and ran through May 27th. The municipality of Jocotepec held several health fairs in different parts of the municipality. Health fair locations included Jocotepec’s main square and San Cristóbal Zapotitlán. In San Cristóbal Zapotitlán, there was a health fair at the Centro Artesanal de Hoja de Maiz.
According to Miguel Ibarra Garabito, coordinator of the Jocotepec Health Center, the health fairs featured different preventive and detection activities. Among them were questionnaires for the detection of chronic diseases such as diabetes, as well as glucose tests, hypertension, and certain types of cancer such as cervical and breast cancer. Anyone who received a test result requiring follow-up was referred to a private consultation, said Ibarra Garabito.
Routine vaccination schedules were completed for children under nine. Children received vaccines against measles, several types of rotavirus, smallpox, and others
«We are completing all the vaccination schedules for children under nine years of age, fortunately, we already have the vaccines and supplies,» said Ibarra.
Additional screenings included PCR or Papanicolau (Pap test) screening, as well as clinical breast screenings. Finally, health fair workers screened for potential domestic violence. Screeners aimed to identify both physical and psychological damage, as well as referring those who need help to resources in the community.
Translated by Amy Esperanto
The makeshift dwelling was left in ashes.
A makeshift house built on the side of a stream was left in ashes after it caught fire at noon on Friday, May 20, with no injuries reported in the incident.
At the site, located in the neighborhood of La Purísima, Chapala Public Safety, Civil Protection and Firefighters were present and worked to extinguish the blaze. Only material damages were reported.
Translated by Christalle Dalsted
The extortion attempt was registered in a store in Hidalgo Street, in Riberas del Pilar. Photo: District Attorney’s Office.
Laguna staff.- A new extortion attempt was registered in the municipality of Chapala, this time in Riberas del Pilar, where officers of the State Security Secretariat (SSE) attended and thwarted the crime.
During a surveillance tour on Hidalgo Street, the state officers were stopped by a man who said that he was receiving calls from an unknown number asking for money in exchange for the release of an employee who was supposedly being held hostage.
The police officers accompanied the man and advised him to avoid making any payment and to continue providing information to the alleged kidnappers, they proceeded to search for the employee, who was found near a hotel, confirming that he was in good health.
Translated by Sydney Metrick
Sergio Herrera Robledo, director of the Civil Protection and Fire Department of Jocotepec. Photo: Héctor Ruiz.
Héctor Ruiz Mejía (Jocotepec).- With the onset of the rainy season, work began on the clearing and cleaning of watercourses and streams in Jocotepec.
The Civil Protection and Firefighters Unit of Jocotepec began the operation on May 15. The purpose is to address the factors that may pose a risk to citizens with the arrival of the rainy season.
Work is being carried out to clear obstructions, such as debris and trash from the watercourses under a plan of operations in coordination with the Parks and Gardens, Public Works and Rural Development departments.
Sergio Herrera Robledo, head of the fire department, said that in addition to the clearing work, flood prevention and other actions have also been carried out in different parts of the municipality.
The points considered at risk have already been cleaned by heavy machinery from the Rural Development Department.
Although the social communication department assured that «all year round, before, during and after the rainy season» they carry out clearing operations, there is no record of the amount of material removed to support this.
In contrast, residents of the community of San Juan Cosalá, such as Francisco, said that there are still points that the Civil Protection Unit should work on, such as the channels at the height of Piedra Barrenada, as they have even removed dead dogs and considerable amounts of trash from there in the past.
Translated by Sydney Metrick
Last birthday of doña Caritina Ríos Gómez. Photo: Facebook
Alma Serrano (San Juan Cosalá).- Caritina Ríos Gómez de Santiago, the best known seamstress of San Juan Cosalá, passed away on May 21 at the age of 91.
Doña Cari was born in the neighboring municipality of Chapala, where she lived until she was 12 years old. It was in 1942 when she moved to the delegation of San Juan Cosalá where she remained until her death.
Ríos Gómez was the only woman in a small family; she had only two brothers, Jorge and Enrique, who also rested in peace. Caritina married David de Santiago Sánchez in 1952, with whom she had six children: Hortensia, Julio, Jorge, David, Mario and Simón; and she remained married to him until the day of his death.
Her two great passions in life were sewing, an activity she carried out since she was 15 years old, and singing, for which she always shared her voice at parties and family birthdays.
Her only daughter, Hortensia de Santiago, 70 years old, affirmed that her mother had fulfilled her goals and dreams during her life because Doña Cari was a very happy woman, dedicated to her family and to the tasks she set for herself.
Until her last days, Caritina Ríos was remembered as a «very good and strong» woman, by neighbors and relatives, even though she no longer remembered many people and things and, of course, she did not have the same physical condition to move around.
On May 9, 2022, she had surgery, which worsened some health problems.
She was cared for by relatives after the operation, as she no longer ate, drank or got out of bed. They remained that way until Saturday, May 21, at two o’clock in the morning, the moment of her natural death.
She was buried in a grave for nine people, next to her husband, one of her children and her parents, as she had wished.
Doña Cari was a religious, kind, faithful, altruistic and beloved person in the town to which she gave more than 75 years of her life. Most people knew her, not only for being the best-known seamstress in San Juan Cosalá, but also for her infallible and characteristic personality that will remain in memory.
Translated by Kerry Watson
Accident on May 19, a truck transporting materials was hit by bus 722 when braking abruptly in San Juan Cosalá.
Jazmín Stengel (Chapala).- «Expensive and dangerous», this is how the buses in Chapala were described by some residents of the municipality. The lack of care on the part of the drivers has caused a series of accidents, especially on the Chapala-Jocotepec highway.
Most of the accidents have occurred because the drivers of Autotransportes Chapala-Guadalajara stop in the highway lane instead of pulling over to allow passengers to board and alight.
This situation led more than one driver of private cars traveling behind a bus to crash into the bus. This was the experience of Juan, a tortilla delivery man who was traveling in his Nissan NP van, and at the end of last year crashed into the back of a bus in San Juan Cosalá, for not being able to brake in time.
On May 19, in the same town, the event was repeated in front of the ‘Colegio Gustavo Díaz Ordaz’ elementary school with another Nissan pickup, this time belonging to a construction company, which crashed into the bumper of the 722 bus after braking abruptly.
The section of the entrance to Ajijic after the La Floresta subdivision is another of the points pointed out by the complainants. Bus drivers take the parallel road to avoid traffic, however, on many occasions it is too narrow and results in minor accidents against parked cars or those leaving the parking lot.
Another witness said that, when giving way to the state patrol cars at the La Montaña in the downtown area of Ajijic racing with their sirens on about a month ago, the bus coming behind the patrols tried to pass at high speed and came face to face with the bus approaching from the front; Álvaro the witness said he was lucky to have been saved.
A video was also circulated on social networks on April 4 showing the fall of a woman who was trying to get out of the rear door of bus number 06, when the bus abruptly started up, causing her to fall to the ground and injuring her. Other popular complaints are the high speed and abruptness with which drivers drive, «play racing» or running stop lights.
The director of Mobility in Chapala, Moisés Ochoa Urquieta, said that he had called the company Autotransportes de Chapala’s attention for not parking the buses at the stops, however, he also excused the drivers when they do not have a place to park. So far there have been no municipal infractions against the company’s units, the official said.
In the municipality of Chapala, accidents involving buses «are not alarming», said Ochoa Urquieta, since they have been minimal and not serious; so far there have only been material losses.
Translated by Kerry Watson
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