Here Mexico

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What about that? Last July Mexican Congress approved the Maximum Wages Law, which states that no public officer can earn more money than the President of the Republic.

But it turns out that in Mexico 153 federal employees earn more than President Calderon, who receives a gross yearly income of 3,324,819 pesos.

According to the Job Descriptions and Salaries document included in the 2010 Federation ExpensesBudget, the President of the Supreme Court Guillermo Ortiz Mayagoitia is the public servant with the highest salary in the country, earning 11,882,266 pesos in gross yearly income, which is the equivalent of the total yearly income of 431 Mexican households.

Eleven active Supreme Court ministers, 40 retired ministers and 72 employees of the Judicial branch of the government will earn more money than President Calderon this year.

Within the Executive branch of the government, the General Director of the Fund for Agriculture,

Livestock and Aviculture Development of the Department of Finance and Public Credit earns more than his boss, with an annual income of 3,357,983 pesos.

Four employees of the IPAB and his secretary will earn 3,372,571 pesos this year.

The President of the Federal Telecommunications Committee earns 3,158,103 pesos; four department heads earn 3,981,627 pesos and the general supervisor of the Federal Police is schedule to receive 3,340,260 pesos in net income this year.

The same goes for the nine members of the Federal Electoral Institute, the executive director and 11 employees of the Federal Executive branch.

Within the Legislative branch of the government, the general secretary of the Chamber of Deputies Guillermo Haro Belchez,  has a gross yearly income of 3,517,277 pesos.

Some governors are in this list as well: the governor of Aguascalientes earns 237,900 pesos each month; Mexico State governor receives 203,068.8 pesos, the one from Jalisco 166,195 and the one from Nuevo Leon 156,624 pesos.

They earn more than the presidents of Argentina, Brazil and Chile.

Almost nobody earns more than the President?

This is a bad joke from the Public Function Secretary, Salvador Vega Casillas, who said that with some exceptions, no public servant has a salary higher than President Felipe Calderon.

Humberto Carrillo y Colón is a retired professor of the School of Journalism at the Universidad La Salle del Bajío, in León, Guanajuato.  Opinions and questions: hcarrilloycolon@mexico.com