Mexico City, Mexico — The mayor of Mexico City has announced the cancellation of the city’s public New Year’s festivities due to an increase in covid figures. Claudia Sheinbaum, head of the Mexico City government, made the announcement Wednesday.
“As a precautionary measure, we are postponing the New Year’s concert,” she said adding that “the Verbena (Christmas) celebration that was scheduled for the 30th and activities in the Zocalo of Mexico City for the 31st, will not be in operation,” she said.
Sheinbaum confirmed the reason for the canceled events was due to a slight increase in COVID-19 infections being registered, stressing that the city remains in a green epidemiological light.
“They are increasing, as we say, slightly (the infections), it is not an alarm, but after many months of a decrease in the percentage of positives, and the number of positives of COVID-19 in the city, we already have about a week where the number of positives began to increase and therefore, also the percentage of positives,” she explained.
“We have not changed the epidemiological light. We are still in a green light, but as we have always done since the beginning of the pandemic, we have been reporting each week what is happening with the COVID-19 information in the same way the Ministry of Health informs us every day, and that is why this precautionary measure is being taken,” she confirmed.
Sheinbaum said that economic activities around the city will not be reduced or closed, since the economic recovery of Mexico City is a priority issue, but particularly because there has not been an increase in hospitalizations or deaths due to covid.
Sheinbaum stressed that this action of cancelling the festivities is not an alarm, since so far, there has not been an emergency situation despite the new omicron variant.
“It is a matter of precaution when seeing that there is an increase in cases, but it is not an alarm, but a measure to avoid a greater number of infections,” she said.