Friday
Friday 1st November 2024.
October 31, 2024
The President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino, gave instructions to the Ministry of Public Works (MOP) , the Land Transportation and Transit Authority (ATTT) and the National Directorate of Transit Operations (DNOT) of the National Police to solve, by Friday, November 1, the problem of traffic circulation on the Roberto F. Chiari highway, known as the “eight-lane” highway, in West Panama.
The president’s warning, given on the morning of Thursday, October 31, to the transport and public works authorities, is due to the long weekend that will take place due to the celebrations of the national holidays, during which thousands of drivers and travelers will be traveling within the country.
“I hope that by Friday (November 1), when there will be a massive flow of traffic both going and coming, the traffic will be properly organized. I ask the MOP to pay attention to this problem,” warned the president.
In addition, President Mulino indicated that during these days of mass mobilization, work such as cutting weeds on the Bridge of the Americas, touching up the paint on the lines of the bridge, among other maintenance activities that affect vehicular traffic, should not be carried out.
Since last Monday, October 28, when the Roberto F. Chiari highway was inaugurated, drivers in West Panama have complained that vehicular traffic has become more complicated than usual, specifically due to the formation of a bottleneck that goes from six lanes to just two at the height of Howard, in addition to the complex and confusing signage found on the highway.
In light of this situation, the Director of Special Projects of the MOP, Gilberto Marengo ; the Director of the ATTT, Jorge Luis Ábrego; the Deputy Commissioner Eduardo Huertas, head of the DOT of the National Police; the Loma Cová Consortium, among other authorities, met today, October 31, to define strategies to solve the traffic congestion that affects more than 64 thousand drivers who travel across the Bridge of the Americas and 44 thousand across the Centenario Bridge daily.
So far, there has been no information on the specific actions that will be taken after the meeting of the authorities. However, it was learned that an operation will be carried out in the highway sector in West Panama in the afternoon.
The ATTT general director stated that, during the meeting, the Traffic and Road Safety team presented proposals and strategies to minimize the impacts on drivers’ mobility, as well as alternatives for safety and efficiency in the flow of vehicles.
Yesterday, the Loma Cová Consortium, following instructions from the MOP, began changing the nomenclature to adjust the vertical signage that confuses drivers, especially at the entrance to the Howard sector. Drivers heading towards the Centenario Bridge should take the right lanes after the Perurena Bridge, while the left lanes allow drivers access to the Roberto F. Chiari Highway towards the Bridge of the Americas.
Brothers Ricardo Alberto and Luis Enrique Martinelli Linares , sons of former President Ricardo Martinelli , failed in their attempt to remove Judge María Eugenia López from the proceedings against them for alleged money laundering in the Blue Apple case .
A ruling released through edict No. 1164 revealed that the Plenary of the Supreme Court of Justice decided to reject outright a recusal presented by the Martinelli Linares brothers to remove Judge López from the Blue Apple case.
The ruling, signed by Judge Angela Russo and supported by the other eight members of the Court, decided not to accept the request made by lawyer Luis Eduardo Camacho González, representing the Martinelli Linares brothers.
On September 6, through an electronic draw, López was assigned as the magistrate who will investigate the case against the Martinelli brothers in the Blue Apple case.
With the appointment of López as a magistrate, the proceedings against the Martinelli brothers in the Blue Apple case began, after the Second Liquidation Court issued a procedural break, after both were sworn in as alternate deputies of the Central American Parliament (Parlacen).
As you may recall, the investigation and trial of deputies of the National Assembly and Parlacen is the responsibility of the Plenary Session of the Supreme Court of Justice.
Following this ruling by the Plenary of the Court, the investigation process by the magistrates of the Court begins, and the magistrates must set the dates, both main and alternate, for the hearing on the merits, which must be notified to all parties involved.
Luis Enrique and Ricardo Alberto Martinelli Linares were re-elected as alternate deputies of the Central American Parliament (Parlacen) in the elections of May 5. Luis Enrique is the alternate for Giselle Burillo. Ricardo Alberto is the alternate for Carlos Outten, who in turn is the alternate for Tomás Benavides (circuit 9-2, Veraguas).
On November 13, 2023, the Second Liquidation Court of Criminal Cases issued a guilty verdict against former Ministers of Public Works Federico Suárez and Jaime Ford.
In the case of Suárez, the criminal sanction was 158 months in prison and a fine of $27.4 million, in the case of Ford the sanction was 80 months in prison and a fine of $11.4 million. Meanwhile, Ricardo Francolini received a sentence of 60 months in prison and a fine of $470 thousand.
Octavio Samaniego was also sentenced to 152 months in prison; Juan Daniel Samaniego to 64 months in prison; and César Jaramillo to 72 months in prison. George Joseph Moreno was also sentenced to 80 months in prison and Alcides Bernal to 60 months in prison.
This sentence was confirmed by the High Court for the Liquidation of Criminal Cases on April 4.
The investigation began on October 30, 2017 for the crime of money laundering through the company Blue Apple, which received bribes from funds obtained from the award of infrastructure contracts to companies approved by the State.
The Budget Committee of the National Assembly has made a controversial decision by approving a resolution restricting access to its meetings; only deputies and their authorized substitutes will be allowed to enter , along with the staff required by the board.
The move has sparked criticism for its potential impact on transparency , as it limits the participation of the press and civil society in a space where key financial decisions are discussed regarding the management of millions of dollars in the country.
Historically, this lack of access is reminiscent of Benicio Robinson ‘s presidency during the previous government (2019-2024), when the media was excluded from the commission’s sessions.
After learning of this resolution, the President of the Assembly, Dana Castañeda, expressed in the plenary session of the Assembly that she respects the autonomy of each commission, but that she does not agree with the measure taken by the Budget Commission.
“I respect the autonomy of the committees, but this Assembly is open to the press and we must be present at the Assembly because we are working in a transparent manner,” Castañeda said. “I do not agree and do not support the closure of the committees or the doors of this Assembly to anyone. I only demand order from everyone and compliance with the Internal Regulations.”
This is happening on the last day of regular sessions, in which the Budget Committee will deal with a series of 50 transfers of budget items, distributed among various public entities and which together represent an approximate amount of $800 million.
A total of 20 entities will have to appear before the Budget Committee to justify their requests for the transfer of funds in a session that includes sectors such as the Ministry of Public Works (MOP), the Ministry of Education (Meduca), the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Security and the Social Security Fund (CSS).
Among the largest amounts to be discussed is the transfer of the corresponding budget for the MOP of $368.5 million; also notable is the CSS with $77.2 million, Meduca with $52 million and the Ministry of Housing with $136 million.
Recently, the newspaper La Prensa reported that the National Assembly was notified by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) about three specific transfers of funds totaling $349.3 million.
The notification, signed by Aurelio Mejía, director of the MEF Budget, details that these budget movements are not only notable for their amount, but also for the origin of the funds. The funds, originally assigned to the Ministry of Education, will be redirected to the Ministry of Public Works, a decision that has sparked controversy in various sectors due to the poor condition of the country’s schools.
The resolution was signed by deputies Ariel Vallarino (vice president), Manuel Cohen Salerno (secretary), Osman Gómez , Jorge Herrera , Medín Jiménez , Néstor Guardia, Raúl Pineda , Raphael Buchanan , Augusto Palacios , Jhonathan Vega and Betserai Richards . However, Palacios, Vega and Richards, from the Vamos bench, voted against it.
The President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino , rejected the decision of the Netherlands to keep Panama on the Dutch tax blacklist, pointing out that the decision is unfair and that it obeys criteria that concern the fiscal policies of the European country, without basis in Panamanian legislation.
“I strongly reject the inclusion of Panama in the Netherlands’ blacklist for tax issues that concern its jurisdiction and not ours,” the president said on his X account (formerly Twitter).
Mulino said he had instructed the Panamanian Foreign Ministry to formally lodge a diplomatic protest. He also indicated that, as a result of this decision, Dutch companies will not be able to participate in tenders, public events or contracts with the Panamanian government, thus limiting their access to the local market.
At the international level, the Panamanian government will also evaluate its position in votes and decisions of international organizations in which it participates alongside the Netherlands.
Panama is under the influence of various atmospheric systems that are occurring on the Caribbean side, which led the authorities to issue a warning of constant rain, extend the Yellow Alert to other provinces and recommend not going to beaches and rivers during the upcoming national holidays.
The Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology of Panama (Imhpa) issued a monitoring notice , which is in effect from 2:30 am on Wednesday, November 31 until 11:59 pm on Sunday, November 3.
“The Panamanian territory is under a warning, due to a period of increased atmospheric instability, the result of the interaction of various atmospheric systems over our region and the Caribbean Sea, whose wind flows will be favorable for the occurrence of abundant rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorms,” the warning states.
Malitzie Rivera , deputy director of the National Civil Protection Service (Sinaproc), said that people have to be prepared for November 3 and 4, because there will be sun in the morning and constant rain in the afternoon.
“This could cause some conditions that are already present to intensify and cause damage. We ask the population to avoid visiting rivers and beaches during these days and to avoid doing this type of activity,” Rivera said.
This Thursday, Sinaproc reported that the Yellow Alert extends to the provinces of Bocas del Toro, Chiriquí, Los Santos, Darién and the regions. In recent days, the Yellow Alert was issued for the provinces of Herrera, Colón, Veraguas and the Guna Yala region.