Federal officials skipped the opening of the 4.7-billion-peso Chihuahua surveillance tower, built by an opposition state government accused of inviting CIA agents in violation of Mexican law.

This article by José Shaddai Olvera Torres originally appeared in the September 11, 2026 edition of El Chamuco, a Mexican leftist satirical political magazine.

El Fisgón cartoon: Governor María Eugenia Campos beside the Chihuahua coat of arms, asking whether the US agents in Chihuahua refer to her

“When they ask what US agents are doing in Chihuahua… do they mean me?” Cartoon: El Fisgón

The governor of Chihuahua, María Eugenia Campos Galván, inaugurated the Torre Centinela, one of the emblematic projects of her security strategy, amid questions over its cost, delay, and lack of coordination with federal and municipal authorities.

President Claudia Sheinbaum did not attend the event, nor did members of her security cabinet, despite the fact that officials from the Secretariat of Defense, the Navy, Security and Citizen Protection, and the Attorney General’s Office had been invited.

In contrast, authorities from the United States embassy and consulate were present, as well as representatives of the government of Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Ciudad Juárez Municipality Questions Lack of Coordination

The absence of the Ciudad Juárez municipal government also marked the inauguration.

The acting mayor, Héctor Ortiz Orpinel, explained that he decided not to attend due to the lack of coordination with the state government to access the cameras of the video surveillance system.

Ortiz Orpinel noted that the municipality remains willing to collaborate, but currently does not have access to that equipment.

Screenshot from coverage of the Torre Centinela inauguration

The episode highlights one of the main questions surrounding the Torre Centinela: coordination among the institutions that should be integrated into the state security scheme.

A 4.7-Billion-Peso Project

Construction of the Torre Centinela began in August 2022 and was completed two years behind schedule.

The stated cost of the project amounts to 4.7 billion pesos.

The former mayor of Ciudad Juárez, Cruz Pérez Cuéllar, described the project as a “pharaonic work” and questioned the allocation of millions in resources to infrastructure whose usefulness, he maintained, remains debatable against other needs of the population.

The Relationship with United States Security Agencies

The relationship with U.S. agencies has also been part of the project.

This past April, the state Secretary of Public Security, Gilberto Loya Chávez, proposed using the 18th floor of the tower to house analysts and technical personnel from the DEA, FBI, CBP, and HSI.

The invitation was later withdrawn, after news emerged of the deaths of two CIA agents who were carrying out undercover work in the municipality of Morelos, in the Sierra Tarahumara.

Screenshot from coverage of the Torre Centinela inauguration

Despite this, Katharine Beamer, the United States consul general in Ciudad Juárez, was present at the inauguration, and she congratulated the Campos government and considered that the tower will contribute to strengthening the region’s security capabilities.

During the ceremony, Campos defended the project as one of the legacies of her administration and accused authorities and politicians, without directly identifying whom she meant, of supposedly not being willing to defend “life and peace.”

Rain, Wind, and Damage During the Inauguration

The event included a light and fireworks show under Campos’s slogan: “Sentinel, activate.”

However, the display was affected by weather conditions.

Heavy rain and wind gusts of up to 75 kilometers per hour scattered the attendees, knocked down screens installed for the show, and damaged sound and lighting equipment.

In addition, one of the glass panels of the façade shattered.

Thousands of Surveillance Devices

The Torre Centinela has 20 floors and three C7 command centers, connected to thousands of surveillance devices.

The system includes:

  • 2,985 rotating and zoom cameras
  • 4,717 fixed cameras
  • 1,791 license plate readers
  • Highway arches
  • Drones
  • Video surveillance trailers

Screenshot from coverage of the Torre Centinela inauguration

The 18th floor will function as a fusion center to gather and process information coming from municipal, state, and federal agencies and, through the corresponding protocols, from international bodies.

Campos asserted that the inauguration does not simply represent the opening of a building, but the consolidation of a project that will leave a legacy for Chihuahua.

However, the project’s delay, its cost, the questions over coordination with municipal authorities, and the absence of the federal government place under scrutiny an infrastructure that the state administration intends to turn into a centerpiece of its security strategy.

The post Torre Centinela: Inauguration Marked by Absences and Criticism appeared first on Mexico Solidarity Media.

From Mexico Solidarity Media via This RSS Feed.