TIJUANA (Border Report) — During a weekend visit to Tijuana, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador made a mild reversal on his highly-criticized stance on COVID-19.
Lopez Obrador has been slow to enact World Health Organization suggestions to keep the Coronavirus from spreading.
The president recorded a video in which he says, “The cases of infection are going to shoot up and the hospitals will become inundated and not have enough beds for the sick.” He urged people to take precautions and stay home.
But he stopped short of locking down Mexico the way California and New York have done.
Many people blame Lopez Obrador for taking a lackadaisical attitude that seems to have been adopted by many in Mexico. Some say he is downplaying the severity of the virus to prevent a panic and avoid further economic troubles.
Last week, dozens of paramedics in Tijuana took to the streets in a caravan to implore people to take the warnings seriously and stay home.
“People don’t care, but we do, we care about the people,” paramedic Mario Montes said.
In spite of his critics, Mexico’s president insists his administration is doing enough and everything will be alright.
“We have always come out ahead when faced with adversity,” Lopez Obrador said.
There have been 237 coronavirus cases reported in all of Mexico.
In the state of Baja California, where Tijuana is located, there have been 31 confirmed cases. Eleven in the city of Tijuana itself.
City of Tijuana finally goes on lockdown.
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