MEXICO CITY, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Sunday announced that he would be slashing the salaries of high-level officials, including himself, as part of an austerity push by the government.
Meanwhile, Lopez Obrador told reporters outside his campaign headquarters that he would raise the national minimum wage in order to "make the budget reach everybody."
He met with members of his future cabinet there earlier.
His monthly base salary would be 108,000 pesos (about 5,700 U.S. dollars), 40 percent of what President Enrique Pena Nieto currently earns, said Lopez Obrador, who will take over the Mexican presidency on Dec. 1.
The president-elect recently announced that he was canceling the generous pensions paid to former presidents, all of whom are wealthy, and a slew of bonuses and fringe benefits provided to lawmakers and other officials.
The austerity plan aims to redirect some 500 billion pesos (about 26.4 billion dollars) a year towards welfare and development programs.
In addition to public-sector belt tightening, Lopez Obrador seeks to pass laws to combat graft.
Mexico ranks 135 out of 180 countries in Transparency International's 2017 Corruption Perceptions Index.
Lopez Obrador's left-of-center National Regeneration Movement (Morena) won a majority in Congress, so proposed bills are virtually ensured congressional approval.
