A candidate for the CAAAREM from Adán Augusto amid controversy over Customs

MEXICO CITY (apro) – An election in the customs union is linked to two recent scandals: on the one hand, the push by the so-called “Juárez Group,” led by Senator Adán Augusto López Hernández; and on the other, the growing controversy over “fiscal huachicol,” which recently led to record seizures.

The candidate favored by the Adamist party is Claudio Silva Herzog Urrutia, the current secretary of the Confederation of Associations of Customs Agents of the Mexican Republic (CAAAREM). He is now seeking to lead the main body of the customs union, despite allegations of irregular management of resources, but with close ties to figures from the so-called "Juárez Group."

Amid the controversy over the importation of gasoline masquerading as hydrocarbons, known as huachicol fiscal, the union is in the public eye for its involvement in such imports.

In this context, the CAAAREM internal election is experiencing a turbulent time, as Claudio Silva Herzog Urrutia, a businessman with a long history in the customs union and trade organizations, is garnering as much support as criticism.

A customs broker since 1994 (patent 1361), Silva-Herzog heads Silva Herzog Consorcio Aduanal, SC, a company with a presence in strategic customs offices such as Mexico City International Airport, Felipe Ángeles International Airport, and the ports of Veracruz and Pantaco. His son, Claudio Silva-Herzog Góngora, serves as Director of Administration and Finance at the same family firm.

The candidate's background in trade organizations includes serving as president of the Metropolitan Customs Agents Association (AAADAM) from 2018 to 2020 and as treasurer of CAAAREM (2021-2023), associations in which his performance has been the subject of serious allegations.

For example, in 2009, the AAADAM Collegiate Body of Order and Justice found him, along with officers Daniel del Río García and Mario Germán Castrocerio Flores, responsible for using association resources to pay for trips to Brussels and China without documentation proving their union membership. In total, they incurred more than 800,000 pesos in expenses for themselves and their companions. The internal committee recommended reimbursement after confirming the lack of integrity.

In 2009, Silva Herzog Urrutia was formally accused by the AAADAM of misusing union resources. Two internal files document that he, along with two other agents, used corporate cards to finance international trips with Association funds.

One of those trips was to Brussels in 2006, allegedly to attend a meeting of the World Customs Organization (WCO), although they did not provide proof of participation. The second was to the IFCBA Congress in China that same year. In total, they incurred more than 800,000 pesos in expenses for themselves and their companions. In both cases, the AAADAM Collegiate Body of Order and Justice recommended reimbursement after confirming the lack of integrity.

Silva Herzog is listed as a shareholder in Promotora de Servicios y Recursos Aduanales, SA de CV, a company that has been closed since 2008 and is made up of several customs brokers, several of whom are close to trade unions. Among them are Francisco José Vidal Osuna and Alejandro Chapela Cota.

Now, facing the CAAAREM election, Silva Herzog is politically linked to the so-called "Juárez Group," a Morena party that includes Andrea Chávez, Adán Augusto López, and Andrés Manuel López Beltrán, known within Morena as the "Triple A."

In fact, Nora Elena Yu Hernández, current legislative liaison commissioner for CAAAREM, is Andrea Chávez's alternate senator and also a customs agent.

According to columnist Salvador García Soto, Yu has been accused of pressuring agents to finance Chávez's campaign for the governorship of Chihuahua in 2027, in exchange for promoting reforms to the Customs Law with the alleged support of Adán Augusto López. Yu has openly expressed her support for Silva Herzog's candidacy.

Various industry sources, consulted by the reporter, warn that this political bloc is now seeking control of CAAAREM, the organization that brings together the country's customs broker associations, a position from which they can influence strategic decisions regarding foreign trade and facilitate the capture of key positions in customs.

The candidate is also part of a family with connections in public and union organizations. His father, Claudio Silva Herzog Flores, obtained a license as a customs broker when his uncle, Jesús Silva-Herzog, was Mexico's Secretary of Finance and Public Credit from 1982 to 1986, during the administration of Miguel de la Madrid. His siblings, Guadalupe and Mario, according to public information, have held positions at the Mexican Social Security Institute and the Tax Administration Service, while César currently works at Infonavit.

The race for the leadership of CAAAREM is also taking place in a particularly tense political environment. The recent scandal in Tabasco, involving former Secretary of Security Hernán Bermúdez Requena, accused of leading a criminal group and currently a fugitive from justice, has generated accusations against Adán Augusto López, under whose governorship Bermúdez was appointed.

"All the rot is already coming out," declared José Ramiro López Obrador, current state government secretary and brother of the former president of Mexico.