In three days, Lima will elect its new mayor. The citizens of Metropolitan Lima shall choose between candidates like George Forsyth, from Somos Perú; Daniel Urresti, from Podemos Peru; and Rafael López Aliaga, from Popular Renewal. Other candidates to lead the mayoral management of the capital of Peru are Elizabeth León, from the Front of Hope, or Gonzalo Alegría, from Together for Peru. As the law prevents the dissemination of surveys these days, at this point it is uncertain if there will be a rebound of any applicant who appears far from the first places.
The preferences, however, are not in line with the technical approaches. That an applicant leads the sympathies does not mean that he is the one with the best proposals to solve the main problems of Lima. This is made clear by the political scientist Alexandra Ames, who analyzed the management plans of the candidates for mayor of the capital. And the result is that, in most cases, there are absences of clear, concrete and achievable proposals in three sectors, according to Ames: sustainable development, prevention of natural disasters and public transport.
Sustainable development
“Sustainable development has to do with the recognition of the environment and the city as an ecosystem. The idea of preserving the environment and recognizing citizens as part of that ecosystem… What happens is that everyone lacks that vision, in some plans the task of collecting solid waste has been identified”, Ames explained.
The political scientist added that, by way of exception, An interesting proposal is that of Forsyth when he proposed the creation of the Environmental Management Department, which today is a sub-management, “Which would allow disassociation from the mere task of collecting solid waste.”
disaster prevention
Lima is a city exposed to a potential seismic movement of great magnitude. No candidate has raised what to do in case of an earthquake that, sooner or later, will happen in the metropolis.
“The absence of this second theme is explained because it is an invisible problem. Not visible like traffic congestion or citizen insecurity. Therefore, since these are the concerns, politicians focus on that and leave everything else aside, ”said Ames.
The expert in public management stressed In addition, the candidates for Lima have reduced their proposals for disaster prevention to the construction of retaining walls. “I have not been able to identify anything salvageable on this issue. Lima is not a flat city, it has hills. The Historic Center is a very vulnerable area to a natural disaster. We still have areas like valleys that are vulnerable to flooding,” he warned.
security and transportation
According to the fighting crimefor Ames, it is surprising that Urresti has promised that, If he becomes mayor, his management will arrest 200 criminals a day, as this implies not only the participation of the local government, but also coordination with other institutions. However, he stressed that, in theory, “the government plan presents very good proposals to fight insecurity, but this has not been perceived in the oral narrative,” he said.
Last days of campaign
The candidates are against the clock to make their main proposals known to the public. Yesterday Forsyth met with the residents of Rímac and then was in a parade with the candidate of Somos Perú in Jesus Maria, Enrique Delhonte.
“There has to be a policy of intersectoral dialogue and there we have to work with President Pedro Castillo, who has very serious investigations, but we have to work with the Executive,” Forsyth said.
While Urresti He toured the districts of Lurigancho-Chosica and Chaclacayo, where he challenged his opponent López Aliaga to clarify the legal situation of the candidate for deputy mayor of Renovación Popular, Renzo Reggiardo.
Meanwhile, López Aliaga visited the human settlements of Villa El Salvador. “I am going to reduce personnel, because these people come from the time of Susana Villarán. I am warning. I’m going to cut” advanced with his already well-known style.
Omar Chehade, candidate for the Alliance for Progress (APP), was in the markets of La Victoria and Elizabeth León, from the Front of Hope, at the Santa Anita Producers Market.
There are less than three days left for Lima to define who its new mayor will be.
The word
Alexandra Ames, political scientist
“Totally, it is a populist measure (proposing to suspend toll collections). Citizens should know that this decision does not correspond to the incoming mayor and it is not that simple”.