THE HARD SELL

Attracting votes demands some reformist parties to what can be described as the Hard Sell, however, it takes on a new meaning according to an article by Marc Lacey in Mexico City in “Scotland on Sunday” 15th February.

The Mayor of Mexico City, Marcelo Ebrard does not even recog­nise the authority of President Felipe Calderon after a dis­puted election two years ago. He argues that Calderon's use of the military against the drug cartels has worsened the situ­ation, causing extreme poverty and more crime in rural areas dependent on drug-trafficking for income. His new initiatives may be more about politics than any­thing else, and with elections looming in July, candidates across Mexico are beginning to lay the groundwork for their campaigns.

To bolster the fortunes of his leftist Party of Democratic Re­volution and to further his own dream of becoming the coun­try's president in 2012, Ebrard has pushed to legalise abortion and gay civil unions in the cap­ital and crack down on illegal street vendors and unlicensed taxi operators, who have long been associated with crowds and crime. His plans to expand subway and bus services are ambitious and popular.

In announcing the erectile dysfunction programme in November, Ebrard, 49, por­trayed it as a way of bringing smiles to the faces of those who have reached the "tercera edad"; or third age, as Mexicans call the golden years.
"Everyone has the right to be happy," the mayor said, noting that many of the poorest elderly people do not qualify for em­ployer-based health plans and have been abandoned by their families. "They don't have med­ical services, and a society that doesn't care for its senior cit­izens has no dignity"
Getting men into public clin­ics with the promise of free medicine could help them get treatment for other related health problems, like diabetes, hypertension, obesity and de­pression believe health offi­cials. "This is a public health problem," said one doctor.
Not everyone is enamoured by the new programme. One of Eb­rard's rivals for the presidency, Fidel Herrera, 59, the governor of Veracruz State from the In­stitutional Revolutionary Party, dismissed the Viagra handouts as ridiculous. "What's the point of encouraging old people to have sex?" he asked in a recent interview. "There's such a thing as nature. You can't play God:"