IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO
THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
Event summary sponsored by:
www.monex.com.mx
IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO
THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
November 7th 2012
Westin Santa Fe, Mexico City
Factors that will shape public policy and
decision-making in Mexico
Justine Thody, editorial director, Americas,
The Economist Intelligence Unit
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
1.
The impact of the economic crisis in 2007-08 on employment
levels in the US is still being felt; Mexico has recuperated
substantially but there is still a lot to be done.
2.
3.
4.
The implications of the democratic transition that began in
Mexico ten years ago.
The lack of investment compared to other countries such as South
Korea; Mexico needs to increase investment to create jobs.
The opportunity for Mexico to capitalise on its demographic
dividend through increased investment in education.
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
René Zenteno, former undersecretary of population, migration and
religious affairs, Ministry of the Interior, United Mexican States
Justine Thody, editorial director, Americas, The Economist
Intelligence Unit
The Mexico story
What megatrends are guiding the next six years?
René Zenteno, former undersecretary of population, migration and religious affairs,
Ministry of the Interior, United Mexican States
Interviewer: Justine Thody, editorial director, Americas, The Economist Intelligence Unit
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
Mexican migration is typically
linked to the fortunes of the
US economy. “After the 2007
economic recession in the US,
migration of Mexican workers
decreased significantly between
2008 and 2011”, said René
Zenteno. “However, this year’s
figures show an increase in
migratory flows, which is clear
evidence that the US economy
is once again demanding
Mexican labour”. The trend
should continue in this direction,
according to Professor Zenteno.
The US economy is only expected
to grow by an average of just
2% in the coming five years—far
below its average growth rate in
the 1990s and the first half of the
following decade.
However, it will not just be the
US economy affecting the flow of
migrants. Mexico is facing a host
of demographic and economic
changes that will continue to
reduce the flow of people to
the US, including, a declining
fertility rate, an increase in life
expectancy and better access to
public goods and loans.
Although the US has strengthened
its policies on undocumented
migrants, migratory flows respond
to economic needs. “There is no
force that can stop migration”,
said Professor Zenteno. The supply
of decent jobs in Mexico will
dictate patterns of migration, he
explained. According to Professor
Zenteno, in order for Mexico to
keep migration rates low, it must
increase real wages and reduce
dependence on the informal
labour market.
With a population of almost 113
million in 2010 (almost twice as
much as it was 35 years ago),
Mexico needs to grow rich before
it grows old in order to capitalise
on its demographic bonus, said
Professor Zenteno. Investment in
education and R&D is essential to
keep Mexican talent in Mexico. “If
Mexico wants to progress, it has
to improve its global position in
terms of innovation”, he said.
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
Aurelio Nuño, coordinator for education,
transition team for the president-elect,
Enrique Peña Nieto
The return of
the PRI:
Key policy goals for the new administration
Aurelio Nuño, coordinator for education, transition team for the
US-Mexico relations. Both the
United States and Mexico have
new incoming governments
at the similar times, creating
substantial opportunities to
refresh bilateral ties. According
to Aurelio Nuño, coordinator
for education for Enrique Peña
Nieto’s transition team, the
priority of the new administration
is to strengthen coordination
between the US and Mexico, not
only in regard to security but
also in relation to trade. They
plan to do this by building more
robust and productive supply
chains throughout North America
(including Canada), allowing both
countries to fend off low-cost
Asian competition.
Labour reform. Pending labour
reforms should make the labour
market more flexible and efficient,
and it will pass through Congress,
as there is a new legislative
agreement with the executive
power, said Mr Nuño. All the
announced reforms that Mr Peña
will present to Congress will be
approved through consensus and
cooperation with the unions, said
Mr Nuño.
Energy reform. Energy reform
will be focused on two main
initiatives for PEMEX, Mexico’s
state-owned petroleum
company: first, modernisation
of the company to increase its
competitiveness and production;
second, legislation to allow
foreign companies to invest in
exploration and exploitation of
deep water and shale gas.
Education. Efforts will be
directed to improve education
quality for younger students,
enhance coverage of high schools
and colleges, upgrade existing
infrastructure, acquire new
technologies (One Laptop per
Child) and develop programmes
for full-time schools. Furthermore,
Mr Nuño made clear that “the
state is in charge of educational
policies, not the National Union
of Education Workers (SNTE)”,
referring to Latin America’s largest
trade union which, historically,
has been very influential in
dictating education policy in
Mexico.
of clear, measurable objectives.
The plan includes a new crime
prevention plan targeted at
reducing violence (homicides,
kidnapping and extortions),
restructuring of the state police
(federal and state), reforms of the
judiciary and penitentiary system
and an increase in the State
security budget (Mexico 1.5% vs
Colombia 5% of GDP). Meanwhile,
the lively debate on legalising
drugs is likely to remain on the
agenda.
Health care. The approach
to health policy will focus on
universal access and coverage
of social security; homologate
pensions (over 65 years old);
unemployment and disability
insurance; and improved
coordination among the various
health related institutions such as
IMMS, ISSSTE and Seguro Popular.
Tourism. The focus will be on a
more integrated infrastructure
plan and the diversification of
destinations, according to Mr
Nuño.
Security. In
regards to security,
the strategy will be
based on a series
president-elect, Enrique Peña Nieto
Interviewer: Tom Wainwright, Mexico bureau chief, The Economist
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
of which nearly 50% work in a
different company, he explained.
The employment
picture
Can the private sector ensure a steady rise in high-paying jobs?
Eduardo Solórzano, chief executive, Walmart Latin America
Interviewer: Tom Wainwright, Mexico bureau chief, The Economist
Walmart has become one of
the largest employers in Latin
America with nearly 370,000
employees. Latin America is the
most important investment region
for the company outside the US.
And Mexico represents almost
two-thirds of this workforce with
company sales estimated at $25b.
Given the region’s strategic
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
importance for Walmart, the
company is investing in the
training and development of
its workforce. “Regionally, we
offer nearly 30 hours of training
per employee per year, so
they can improve their skills
for better opportunities within
the company”, said Eduardo
Solórzano, chief executive of
Walmart Latin America. As a
result of this training program,
Walmart Mexico granted 25,000
promotions last year, which means
that around 10% of its employees
are now working in higher-paying
job positions, according to Mr
Solórzano. In Brazil, the company
has implemented training
programs for groups with no
access to education. The initiative
has reached almost 8,000 people,
Almost 80% of Walmart’s
consumers are women and in
Latin America 51% of employees
are female. Mr Solórzano
explained how the company is
responding to this demographic
trend. “We are training nearly
39,000 women entrepreneurs in
Mexico to make them part of the
value chain of the company”,
he said. “Worldwide, the
company plans to invest almost
$20b by 2016 to buy products
manufactured specifically
by female entrepreneurs”.
Additionally, Walmart is aware
that the rising middle class in the
region has started to buy more of
its products. Walmart has made a
“very fine market segmentation
throughout Latin America in order
to identify where those consumers
are and what they are demanding
the most”, Mr Solórzano said.
The Mexican market has become
increasingly important for the
company. Walmart foresees that
consumption levels will continue
to rise in emerging markets
in future years. Mr Solórzano
emphasized that Walmart is
committed to continue increasing
its investment levels and to
buying Mexican products with the
aim of selling them in both local
and international markets.
Eduardo Solórzano, chief executive,
Walmart Latin America
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
Nicolas Shea, founder, Start-up Chile
Eduardo Munhos de Campos, vice-president,
Latin America, Commercial Aviation, Embraer
Start-up Inc
Is economic policy matching the demand for starting new
businesses?
Eduardo Munhos de Campos, vice-president, Latin America, Commercial Aviation, Embraer
Nicolas Shea, founder, Start-up Chile
Moderator: Robert Lane Greene, business correspondent, The Economist
The Chilean model. Start-up
Chile is a government program
that grants seed capital to
entrepreneurs all around the
world. What makes it unique,
according to Nicolas Shea, serial
entrepreneur and founder of
the organisation, is that Chile
is a developing country giving
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
money to entrepreneurs in
developed countries. “We focus
on the entrepreneurs and let the
entrepreneur do the rest”, said Mr
Shea.
The two main trends that the
founders of Start-up Chile
observed were:
1. Many entrepreneurs working
for the government after 2010
earthquake in Chile.
2. The desire to position Chile
as the innovation and
entrepreneurial hub of the
region.
Launched in 2010, Start-up
Chile incentivised early-stage
entrepreneurs from all around
the world and brought them to
Chile for six months in exchange
for $40,000 USD in cash from
the local government. In 18
months the program had 1,000
entrepreneurs from 65 different
countries. 500 of whom are no
longer in Chile today are creating
jobs elsewhere, challenging the
status quo and connecting Chile
to the world, explained Mr Shea.
“The benefits are so clear that the
development of Start-up Mexico
would be a guaranteed success”,
he said.
According to Mr Shea, Mexico
presents many advantages for a
similar “Start-up” programme.
Notable among these are its
demographics, with a population
of over 113 million and a large
number of Mexicans living abroad.
He recommends increasing the
budget for R&D (Mexico spends
.04% of GDP compared to Chile’s
.05%), but also believes that
simply increasing the budget is
not enough—innovation must
develop ideas that will sell.
The Brazilian model. Speaking
about Brazil’s entrepreneurial
environment was Eduardo Munhos
de Campos, vice-president of
Commercial Aviation for Embraer,
one of the world’s largest aircraft
manufactures, which continues to
be ranked as one of Brazil’s most
innovative companies by global
magazines. Mr Munhos said that
Brazil presents an ideal economic
and geopolitical platform for
entrepreneurs and start-ups.
Average incomes are higher
than ever and the middle class
represents 50% of the population.
Though Brazil’s economy relies
heavily on commodities, the
government has invested in
education and innovation at
universities, he said.
However, heavy taxation and too
much government involvement
remain obstacles to starting new
businesses, according to Mr
Munhos. In addition, the R&D
climate in Brazil is in need of
much improvement. The country
follows the US model, in which
the government supports large
investments. However those who
require smaller amounts must
look elsewhere, to private and
investment funds, he explained.
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
The architecture
of progress
How designers and entrepreneurs are solving the
problemsof urbaniSation
Tatiana Bilbao, partner, Tatiana Bilbao, S.C.
Jimena Pardo, co-founder, Carrot
Moderator: Justine Thody, editorial director, Americas, The Economist Intelligence Unit
Jimena Pardo, co-founder,
Carrot
Tatiana Bilbao, partner,
Tatiana Bilbao, S.C.
sharing to meet the challenges of
sustainable mobility.
“We need to find innovative
solutions to common problems
such as the transit and
contamination in Mexico City”,
said Jimena Pardo, co-founder
of Carrot, Mexico’s first carsharing service. This innovative
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
start-up is addressing problems
of urbanisation by helping
complement the public and
private efforts in the city by
“building a community through
car-sharing”. The success of Carrot
speaks for itself. “We started with
3 cars and now we have 40 cars
and more than 1,400 users”, Ms
Pardo says, who launched the
company with her partner Diego
Solórzano in June 2012. She
believes Mexican society is ready
to adopt solutions such as car-
For Tatiana Bilbao, a well-known
architect that works on urban
and social development projects
around Mexico, architecture is
an important tool for improving
quality of life and also offering
solutions to common problems in
mass urban spaces. “Architecture
needs input from different
disciplines to develop integral
projects”, she said. Public spaces
need to be recovered, as they are
one of the best ways to rebuild
social fabric (community structure)
in most cities, according to Ms
Bilbao. However, “we need to find
our own urban models in Mexico
that are inspired by citizens
and cultural and community
development, not by cars or
roads”, she said.
Cities in Colombia, such as
Bogotá and Medellin, are good
examples of how public space can
be restored to help reduce the
levels of violence and rebuild the
social fabric. In Mexico, Mexico
City is another good example
of restoration of public space.
However, cities like Guadalajara
or Monterrey still need to improve
their efforts. “One of the biggest
challenges of urban development
in the upcoming years is to
improve the policies of land
use while implementing more
sustainable mobility programs”,
said Ms Bilbao. “Such as those
intending to pedestrianise and
condense particular zones in the
cities”.
According to both Ms Bilbao and
Ms Pardo, successful models
for urban sustainability can be
developed in every city if private
funding is available and civil
society and government are truly
committed to it.
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
Gael Garcia Bernal, co-founder,
Canana Productions
The art of soft
power
Can art and cinema improve the life of the average Mexican?
Gael Garcia Bernal, co-founder, Canana Productions
Moderator: Robert Lane Greene, business correspondent, The Economist
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
Soft power was a concept
originally introduced by Joseph
Nye, award-winning political
scientist form Harvard University,
who defined it as “the ability
to get what you want through
attraction rather than through
coercion”. The elements of soft
power include culture, sports,
music, television and
movies, explained
Robert Lane Greene,
business correspondent
for The Economist. Mr
Greene interviewed
Gael Garcia Bernal,
actor and co-founder
of Canana Productions,
a film, television and
theatre production
company with a
distributing arm and a
documentary division
founded 8 years ago.
Canana aims to create
new authors, play
writers, television
writers and film
directors by expanding
the entire spectrum
of creativity. It even gives
untrained film enthusiasts the
opportunity to make amateur
films. “Running an independent
production company in Mexico
is complicated and challenging,
mainly because we don’t have
television as an ally due to its
monopolistic structure,” said Mr
García. However, over the years,
other production companies have
emerged, improving the situation
through increased competition,
he explained.
Given Mexico’s strength in the
cinema industry, Mr Garcia
explained, “through art we can
reduce inequality, the country’s
most severe problem. Art can find
the way to tackle economic and
political issues and it works”.
Mexico finds itself in a very
complicated situation at the
moment, as it is constantly the
subject of bad press. That is why
art is such an important pillar of
change in society. Art acts as a
catalyst and can be the main force
behind the sustainability of any
social policy, he explained.
In regards to Mexico’s recent
presidential election, Mr García
pointed out that the fear of the
PRI returning to government
is that they will try to limit the
freedom of expression in the arts
and journalism. He also stressed
the importance of reviewing
the television monopoly, which
inhibits the development of new
content, new authors and new
programs.
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
The health
of nations
What Mexico’s health care system says
about regulation and competition?
Bertrand Baron, chief executive, Sanofi-aventis, Mexico
Interviewer: Justine Thody, editorial director, Americas,
The Economist Intelligence Unit
Mexico is passing through a
double transition—demographic
and epidemiological—that is
affecting the development of its
health care system, said Bertrand
Baron, chief executive of SanofiAventis Mexico. The demographic
transition implies an increase
in life expectancy from 75 to 80
years old by 2025 and a fourfold
increase in the population of
over 65 by 2050. At the same
time, Mexico is experiencing an
epidemiological transition related
to these demographic trends,
with Mexicans now suffering from
diseases different from those that
existed 50 years ago, such as noninfectious or chronic-degenerative
diseases, like cancer and diabetes.
The changes driven by
these transitions are putting
considerable pressure on the
health care system, Mr. Baron
said. “Health care planning
nowadays has to be more focused
on preventing than curing,
which has consequences on the
financial stability of the health
care system”, said Mr Baron.
The Mexican government is
making good progress in regards
to prevention through the
implementation of programs such
as PrevenIMSS, he explained.
However, it still has to execute
successfully on integral programs
focused on health, education and
fitness, which will impact on a
wider sector of the population and
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prevent diseases such as diabetes.
Furthermore, public spending
in health care needs to be
increased. Mr Baron explained
that Mexico has fallen behind in
public spending on health. Its
actual spending is around 6.1%
of the GDP, one of the lowest
among OECD countries, where the
average is around 9%.
Another challenge for the Mexican
health care system, according to
Mr Baron, is to improve access to
better low-cost medicines for the
population. “Although the Seguro
Popular has been a major step
towards universal healthcare,
the fragmentation of the health
care system has made the process
more complex, proving that it
is essential that Mexico works
towards the integration of a
unified system”, he explained.
The pharmaceutical market has
introduced generic drugs as an
alternative for those consumers
who cannot afford to buy
traditional drugs. Sanofi has
taken advantage of this market
opportunity by buying a generic
drugs company and investing
more than $10m in a plant in
Mexico.
Mr Baron concluded that the
future of the health care system
in Mexico has good prospects.
“With a strong and efficient
regulator such as Cofepris, a good
intellectual property framework
and the promotion of an
integrated system, the health care
system in Mexico is moving in the
right direction”.
Bertrand Baron, chief executive,
Sanofi-aventis, Mexico
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
The China question
Ambassador Sergio Ley, Asia-Pacific chair,
Mexican Business Council for Foreign
Trade; former Ambassador of Mexico to
ChinA
Eduardo Solis, president, Asociación
Mexicana de la Industría Automotriz
How can Mexico reap the benefits of China’s rising wages?
Ambassador Sergio Ley, Asia-Pacific chair, Mexican Business Council for Foreign Trade;
former Ambassador of Mexico to China
Eduardo Solis, president, Asociación Mexicana de la Industría Automotriz
Moderator: Robert Lane Greene, business correspondent, The Economist
inviting Chinese suppliers of large
companies to come to Mexico to
produce”, suggested Mr Ley.
Since Chinese labour has
increased in cost, Chinese
companies will also look for
alternative locations to produce
their products. Mexico can
provide a platform with a wide
international network, he
explained. This opportunity
can add value to Mexican
supply chains and will also help
create jobs through increased
investment, according to Mr Ley.
According to Sergio Ley, former
Ambassador of Mexico to China,
China’s wages have increased
over the last decade and will
continue to rise. This is due to
China’s shift in focus to high
value-added manufacturing
processes, something that was
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necessary for the growth of its
economy, he explained. Now this
shift represents an opportunity for
Mexico because of its proximity
to some of the largest markets in
the world. Thus, Mexico can offer
investment incentives to attract
the companies that left China,
explained Mr Ley.
However there is a risk that Mexico
won’t implement the right policies
to attract these companies or face
up to competition from countries
such as Bangladesh. “We can gain
a lead in the investment fight by
Eduardo Solis, president of
Asociación Mexicana de la
Industria Automotriz (AMIA), sees
the increasing costs of labour
in China as new investment
opportunities for the automotive
industry.
Nonetheless, Mr Solis fears
that higher costs will draw new
subsidies from Chinese provinces
to “support” their producers. This
may become an important issue to
be discussed in the international
arena in a few years, he predicted.
Mr Ley believes that Mexico
has always seen China as a
major competitor and that both
countries compete actively in
the US market (For instance,
China has overtaken Mexico in
terms of trade). The fact that they
are both heavily industrialised
countries means that they can
complement each other. China
will look to other industrialised
countries (Mexico is the most
industrialised country in Latin
America) to expand production,
markets and businesses. Though
Mexico can offer several benefits,
such as infrastructure and a
qualified workforce, it has to focus
its attention on reforms to make
it more attractive in international
markets. According to Mr Solis, the
most critical reforms are needed
in the labour, fiscal and energy
sectors.
Increasing costs in China are
sending the North American
companies that followed the
off-shoring trend to Asia years
ago back to the US, said Mr Solis.
Recent US policies aimed at
creating jobs by re-industrialising
the country represent a great
opportunity for Mexico, he
explained. “The country has many
opportunities in the automotive
sector”, said Mr Solis. “The Just in
Time and Sequence methods of
production have had better results
in Mexico than in China due to its
geographic proximity”.
China’s manufacturing sector
became more sophisticated as it
invested heavily in R&D. This is
a lesson Mexico needs to learn,
according to Mr Ley. Mexico must
also invest in education to be
able to offer a more highly skilled
workforce, he explained.
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IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
In this panel, Alejandro Poiré,
secretary of the interior of
the Mexican government and
Shannon O’Neil, senior fellow of
the Council on Foreign Relations
addressed the challenges being
faced by the Mexican and US
governments regarding security.
AlejanDro Poiré, secretary of the interior,
United Mexican States
Shannon O’Neil, senior fellow for Latin
American Studies, Council on Foreign
Relations
Disrupting the
Drug war
A special session in partnership with the Council on Foreign
Relations
Shannon O’Neil, senior fellow for Latin American Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
Alejandro Poiré, secretary of the interior, United Mexican States
Moderator: Tom Wainwright, Mexico bureau chief, The Economist
www.economist.com/events-conferences/americas
In the United States, The
legalisation of marijuana in
Colorado and Washington will
generate legal challenges for
the US federal government and
for those state governments who
opposed the referendum. Not
many changes are expected in
terms of legal production and
sale of marijuana. However, this
does open up a space in the US
to prioritise these issues on the
political agenda at a time when
the US federal government has
been quite resistant, said Ms
O’Neil.
the consensus of the political
forces and the civil society”,
according to Mr Poiré.
Mr Poiré recognised that there still
a lot more to be done. The main
challenges are:
1. The implementation of
the reform of the criminal
justice system on a national
scale (only 4 states have
implemented it)
2. The debugging and
professionalisation of
police forces at both state
and municipal levels.
(Only 172,000 have passed
‘confidence control exams’
and more than 140,000 have
failed and have not been
removed)
The new administration coming
into office in Mexico offers an
The decision taken by President
opportunity to bring more current
Calderón to fight organised crime
issues to the agenda and to
groups has been questioned
analyse how both administrations
by various sectors of Mexican
are prioritising issues, said Ms
society. However, for the federal
O’Neil. She explained that in
government, it was right decision the second term of the Obama
to make, said Mr. Poiré. The
administration there will be some
strategy has complemented the
changes. “Some high level officers
reforms and agreements approved will be removed and a new team
in this sexenio, such as, the
will be formed”, Ms O’Neil said.
Criminal Justice and the National
“However, we cannot expect major
Public Security System reforms, as changes as both governments
well as the National Agreement on are coordinating their efforts at
Justice and Security, both of which different levels”.
have been accomplished “through
Meanwhile, Mr Poiré argued that
both governments have a very
good level of coordination, but
also outlined unsolved issues for
the incoming government:
1. The investigations into Fast
and Furious
2. The significant number of
weapons still crossing the
border illegally
3. The reinforcement of the
Merida Initiative
4. Improvement on security
protocols for research and
resolution of judicial cases on
both sides of the border
“The high demand for illegal
drugs in the US is still the biggest
problem driving drug cartel
violence”, explained Mr Poiré. “It
generates resources that allow
cartels to operate at significant
levels” The size of the illegal
market of drugs is around $30b a
year.
21
IDEAS ECONOMY: MEXICO THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
Power shifts
The new political context
Ernesto Cordero, president of the Senate, United Mexican States
Interviewer: Tom Wainwright, Mexico bureau chief, The Economist
The new dynamics of Mexico’s
congress will determine the
outcome of reform negotiations
during the next presidential term.
“The labour reform will be
approved in the following days”,
said Ernesto Cordero, president of
the Senate, explaining that there
had been a lot of disinformation
related to the reform and the
negotiations around it.
According to Senator Cordero, the
political division in Congress does
not make it dysfunctional. In fact,
he thinks that it is a good sign for
Mexico’s democracy and will result
in better negotiations between
parties and in progressive reforms.
The Congress did not paralyse
reforms during the past six years
during which two fiscal reforms,
two tributary reforms and two
structural reforms were passed,
added Mr Cordero. Within the legal
framework of preferred initiatives,
the Congress will approve two
structural reforms in less than
eighty days, something that is of
very high significance for Mexico,
he explained.
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Ernesto Cordero,
president of the Senate
Mexico’s political development is
highly asymmetrical. Government
schemes are very effective and
accountable at a federal level but
this is not replicated throughout
the states. “The states are
considered a feudal power since
local political development is
very poor”, explained Mr Cordero.
“They control Congress, the media
and communications, and so on”.
Responding to the defeat of the
PAN in July’s election, Mr Cordero
explained that the new path for
the PAN will begin with a thorough
evaluation on what went right and
what went wrong to allow them
to begin redesign the party. An
important lesson that needs to be
learned is the need to improve
party’s communication to the
population, reform the party’s
internal statutes, promote the its
principals, of which freedom is
the most important, and finally,
rethink the candidate selection
process, he said.