In full presidential succession, the Science Prize goes to Annie Pardo, Sheinbaum’s mother

After two years in which the prize was not awarded, in the midst of controversy over a new science and technology law and in the middle of the presidential succession phase, the 2022 National Science Prize was awarded to biochemist Annie Pardo Simo, mother of Claudia Sheinbaum, head of government of Mexico City.

This Tuesday, the Ministry of Public Education (SEP) announced the winners of the award, given to the nation’s most outstanding scientist, which was not awarded in 2020 or 2021. Immunologist Edda Lydia Sciutto Conde, plant pathologist Gustavo Mora Aguilera, and biochemist Pardo Cemo.

According to the agreement published in the Federation’s Official Gazette, the award winners “made remarkable contributions in the various fields in which this award is given, driving progress and innovation in the fields of knowledge.”

Pardo Simo holds a Doctor of Science from UNAM, In addition, she is Professor Emeritus at that university and Honorary Scholar of the National Scholars Scholar. He is part of the Department of Molecular Biology and Head of the Pulmonology Laboratory for Fibrosis Diseases. Previously, he had already won other prizes, among them the National University of Natural Sciences Research.

Thus, many scholars acknowledge Pardo Simo’s merits in receiving the award, but many others pay attention to the political context in which it is bestowed. The first item is that after two years of not being awarded, The prize returns when there is widespread rejection of the new public law on the humanities, technologies and innovation.

Of course, the news circulates with the approaching opening of the internal process of Morena, through which her candidate for the presidency of the republic is determined, as the polls put Bardo Simo’s daughter at the forefront.

In this respect, for example, the science journalist Javier Flores did not compromise any merit for Pardo Simo, but he also referred to the political moment in which he is rewarded; He wrote the following on his Twitter account: “But it is impossible to omit that there is something that distorts these confessions, I’m referring to the moment 4T decided to send a message that, yes always, they care about science, after the aforementioned prize was not awarded in 2020 and 2021.

What is so confusing about this correction is that it is used to support a law that is falling apart on account of vices in parliamentary procedure, and This also happens when Claudia Sheinbaum heads the list of applicants to succeed AMLO. However, congratulations to the winners.”