The governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, has once again presented this Sunday a request to temporarily absent himself from his position, in a context of strong controversy just one day after his official reintegration into the state government.
"As I consider it pertinent, I present myself before that honorable Legislative Power to request a temporary license with indefinite character, for more than thirty days, from the position of Constitutional Governor of the State of Sinaloa," the governor communicated in a document disseminated through his social networks.
The new license request has been submitted to the local Congress of Sinaloa, just a few days after Rocha resumed his functions last Friday, after having been away from the exercise of the position for 112 days while investigations against him for alleged crimes linked to drug trafficking were ongoing.
In his unexpected return on Friday, Rocha proclaimed that he was "back," and that he "was once again assuming the responsibility of governing and working for Sinaloa and its people," after several months out of the position, on his own initiative, to present himself before the Prosecutor's Office in the context of the investigation opened for alleged ties to drug trafficking.
At the same time, he defended that the accusations against him were motivated by political and interventionist reasons, pointing to sectors of the far-right both nationally and internationally. In that line, he reiterated his support for President Claudia Sheinbaum and emphasized his commitment to the sovereignty, democracy, and independence of Mexico.
Rocha's return has sparked an intense internal political debate, in which the stance of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has gained special relevance, who stated that "no personal interest can ever be above the interests of the people and the Nation," and warned that "power without principles becomes arrogance."
Rocha insisted that the Prosecutor's Office does not appreciate "the minimum elements of evidence that support (his) participation in any criminal conduct." "That is, I have not committed any crime, according to the constitutional and legal framework of our country. I am foreign and innocent of the fabrications that have been woven against me to harm (...) the left political movement in which I am involved," he has emphasized.
Last May, the governor had already requested the Congress of Sinaloa for permission to temporarily separate from the governorship and thus face the charges of drug trafficking made by the United States against him and nine other high-ranking officials of the state government.