Replacement for slain tourism secretary named

Following the assassination of Jesus Gallegos on March 9, Enrique Ramos Flores was named as Jalisco’s new Secretary of Tourism the following Friday.

“I’m sure Mr. Enrique Ramos Flores has the ideal profile for the position that sadly became vacant,” said Governor Aristoteles Sandoval at brief ceremony in the Palacio del Gobierno. Sandoval also added that Jalisco is the state with the seventh highest tourism revenue in Mexico but has the potential to be the highest.

Upon taking up office on March 15, Ramos said he hopes to bring Mexico’s Tianguis de Turismo back to Jalisco, and specifically to Guadalajara. The tourism fair has previously taken place in Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta but the 2013 edition will take place in Puebla and next year’s event will be in Quintana Roo.

Ramos also said he will focus on ensuring that security problems do not cause any further decline in tourism in Jalisco, as well as constructing a highway from Guadalajara to Puerto Vallarta. Both Sandoval and President Enrique Peña Nieto have backed the project, Ramos said, suggesting federal funds will be made available for construction to begin.

A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Ramos, 67, has had a long political career, having served as Secretary of Economic Development 20 years ago and later worked for the Zapopan municipal government. Born into a family of hotel owners, he has a wealth of experience in the tourism industry and the world of business.

Ramos taught at the University of Guadalajara’s school of tourism from 1974 to 1976, he served as president of the Jalisco Association of Hotels and Motels from 1973 to 1977, and then became vice president of the national Association of Hotels and Motels from 1977 to 1979. Ramos also served as president of the Guadalajara chapter of the National Chamber of Commerce (Canaco) from 1984 to 1985.